Visakhapatnam: AP Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to constitute a high-level panel to inquire into the cause of the train mishap on Sunday night, which has claimed 14 lives so far and left about 50 injured.
Reddy, who met survivors of the accident at a government hospital in Vizag and conducted an aerial survey of the accident site at Kantakapalli said: “The devastating train accident has caused me great pain. A running train collided with a stationed train, both of which were running in the same direction. This horrifying accident gives rise to certain obvious questions: Why did the brake system and the alert system not function? Why did the signalling fail? How did the communications system fail?”
A preliminary railway probe into the accident has held the driver and the assistant driver of Rayagada train responsible for the collision. This train passed two defective auto signals by violating norms. Both crew members were killed in the accident.
The preliminary report, according to PTI, said, “The Rayagada passenger train hit the Visakhapatnam-Palasa passenger train from the rear after the crew of the Rayagada passenger passed two defective auto signals. Hence, LP (loco pilot), S.M.S. Rao, ALP (assistant loco pilot) Chiranjeevi of the train are held responsible.”
Rao and Chiranjeevi and the guard of the Palasa passenger, M.S. Rao, 58, died in the accident.
As per railway norms, a train should have stopped for two minutes at the defective auto signals and then started at 10 kmph; which did not happen in the present case, leading to the collision.
ECoR divisional railway manager Saurabh Prasad said it was too early on his part to cite any reason for the mishap. The commissioner of safety would begin an inquiry from November 2 in Visakhapatnam, he said. “We have seized the speedometer charts, signals etc for the inquiry,’’ he told Deccan Chronicle.
Meanwhile, the East Coast Railway (ECoR) restored the services on Kantakapalli-Alamanda section of Vizianagaram district by about 220 pm on Monday, where the Rayagada passenger rammed into the Palasa passenger train, killing 14 passengers and injuring over 50 on Sunday evening.
The accident led to the cancellation of 47 trains, diversion of 24, rescheduling of eight and short-terminating of eight others.
ECoR general manager (DRM) Manoj Sharma extended his support to the track restoration activities. More than 1,000 workers, staff and supervisors from various departments worked on mission mode to restore the train services.
Five coaches plus the locomotive got mangled. Three coaches were of the train which was ahead (Palasa Passenger) and two coaches and the engine were of the Rayagada passenger, the DRM said.
Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy asked Vizianagaram collector S. Nagalakshmi to disburse the ex gratia to the bereaved families and the injured immediately. Ensure to provide the injured the best of medical treatment, he said.
The Chief Minister arrived at the hospital at 1.20 pm and visited the exhibition point where the accident photos were displayed. After a brief interaction with the officials, he visited the wards and spoke to the victims.
Education minister Botsa Satyanarayana, industries minister Gudivada Amarnath, local MLA Veerabhadra Swamy, Mayor Vijayalakshmi, ST commissioner Shankar Rao and others were present.
