New Delhi: A team of five senior railway officials has initiated an inquiry into the Jalgaon train tragedy in which 13 people lost their lives, the Railway Board said on Thursday. The team includes principal chief safety officer (PCSO), principal chief security commissioner (PCSC), principal chief electrical engineer (PCEE), principal chief mechanical engineer (PCME) and principal chief commercial manager (PCCM) — all from the Central Railway Zone, it said.
The team has initiated an investigation into the incident, said Dilip Kumar, Executive Director, Information and Publicity, Railway Board. “The PCSO has been appointed as convener,” Kumar said. “They have been asked to look into the cause of the incident and submit a report as soon as possible,” he added.
Thirteen passengers of the Mumbai-bound Pushpak Express, who got off the train after an alarm chain-pulling incident, were run over by the Karnataka Express heading from Bengaluru to Delhi on the adjacent tracks in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon district on Wednesday evening.
Swapnil Dhanraj Nila, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO), Central Railway, earlier said that the Railway Protection Force and Government Railway Police had initiated a preliminary inquiry after the tragedy on Wednesday to find out what caused passengers to pull the alarm chain and alight the Pushpak Express.
Now, the probe has been handed over to the team of five senior officials. Asked if the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) will also investigate the incident, Nila said, “The order for a CRS enquiry hasn’t been issued yet.”
Initial reports suggested that a rumour of fire caused panic among Pushpak Express’ passengers who alighted and waited at the adjacent tracks for a few minutes when the speeding Karnataka Express mowed many of them down.
The Railway Ministry clarified that no spark or smoke emanated from any part of the coach. “We are trying to find out who spread the rumour and what caused the passengers to come out of the train,” a railway official said.