Jalpaiguri, West Bengal: The death toll has risen to 9 in Bikaner-Guwahati Express accident, while as many as 36 people have been reportedly injured, as reported by ANI.
The preliminary inquiry showed a problem in the locomotive equipment to be the reason behind the train mishap at Domohani in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal, said Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. He also said that the Commission of Rail Safety is conducting an inquiry to find the exact cause of the accident.
“Preliminary inquiry shows there was a glitch in the locomotive equipment. The Commission of Railway Safety is conducting an inquiry to find the root cause behind the accident,” Vaishnaw said, speaking to ANI. “The disbursement of ex gratia amount to the families of the victims has begun. Family of each deceased will get Rs 5 lakhs. In case of serious injury, Rs 1 lakh will be given as compensation to the victim, while Rs 25,000 will be given to the victims with non-serious injuries,” he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation earlier on Thursday and announced an enhanced amount of ex-gratia payment to the victims of the accident.
Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) undertook the rescue operation as the passengers were trapped after multiple bogies of the train derailed. The accident took place at around 5 pm on Thursday and around 10 coaches were affected in the accident.
