A passenger train collided with a goods train in Chattisgarh’s Bilaspur district near the district’s railway station. Officials confirmed eight casualties, while several people have been injured, as of Tuesday evening.
A MEMU train coach had hit a goods train at about 16:00 hrs near the Bilaspur station. The Railway officials have informed that operations to rescue the survivors are ongoing, as it was reported that about two to three people are still stuck inside the train, and operations are undergoing to rescue them. Sanjay Aggrawal, the collector of Bilaspur, explained the events, saying that the last bogie of the goods train had crashed into the first bogie of the passenger train.
The authorities have announced a compensation of 10 lakh for the family of the deceased, while 5 lakh has been announced for the seriously injured, and 1 lakh for those with minor injuries. The officials investigating the matter have also confirmed that more information will be released once the investigations are done.
The CPRO of the South East Central Railways has stated that a detailed inquiry by the Commissioner of Railway Safety will be conducted. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Vishnu Deo Sai, responded to the event and expressed his grief. He showed support for the families of the victims and stated that, after talking to the District Collector of Bilaspur, all possible assistance was being provided at the scene of the tragedy.
Chhattisgarh’s former CM, Raman Singh, also responded to the incident and called the train collision “extremely heartbreaking”. He expressed his condolences to the victims of the tragedy and also showed support for the rescue operations.
The train collided near the Lal Khadan Railway Station in Bilaspur. While the rescue teams have reached the scene, the railways have issued helpline numbers to help those in distress.
