Rescue teams at the site of the train mishap in Jalgaon district, Maharashtra on January 23, 2025.
| Photo Credit: PTI
The police and the railways began a probe into Wednesday’s Jalgaon train accident in which 12 persons were killedeven as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday (January 23, 2025) called the accident the result of a “sheer rumour” about fire by a tea seller on Pushpak Express.
Jalgaon District Collector Ayush Prasad said the police were investigating the criminal conspiracy angle, while railway officials were probing the technical aspect of the accident, wherein they were checking the speed, brakes, and where the fire came from, if any.
Mr. Prasad dismissed reports of any spark or smoke as the fire brigade’s foam team was never used during the rescue operation.
The railway investigation team includes the Principal Chief Safety Officer, the Principal Chief Security Commissioner, the Principal Chief Electrical Engineer, the Principal Chief Mechanical Engineer and the Principal Chief Commercial Manager from the Central Railway Zone.
Chief Public Relations Officer, Swapnil Dhanraj Nila, said the Railway Protection Force and the Government Railway Police initiated an inquiry. In the preliminary inquiry, it was found that after the Pushpak Express stopped, the driver activated the flasher light and applied the brakes as per rules. The curvature of the train was nearly two degrees, which obstructed visibility and reduced the distance for applying the brakes. Even people could not see the train coming. Pilots tried their best to avoid the incident, the CPRO said.
On Wednesday, passengers on Pushpak Express, travelling from Lucknow to Mumbai, jumped off the train after an emergency chain-pulling incident owing to rumour of fire.
Toll remains at 12
The death toll remains at 12. Earlier on Wednesday, the administration gave the official figure as 13 but it was lowered on Thursday as the police found decapitated bodies and misnumbered them. “One of the deceased’s family members could not identify the decapitated body, and on Thursday, another member of the family identified the same body and the count came down to 12,” said Jalgaon Medical Superintendent Vijay Gaikwad.
Among the 12 deceased, the administration has identified 11 bodies and handed over nine of them to their families. Among the 10 injured, two have spine injuries. Among the 12 deceased, seven are from Nepal and the rest from Uttar Pradesh.
Speaking to reporters in Pune, Mr. Pawar said, “A tea seller from the pantry shouted about a fire having broken out in a coach.” Two passengers from Shravasti in Uttar Pradesh heard it and conveyed the false alarm to others, leading to confusion and panic in their general coach and the adjoining one. “
When the train halted, people started getting down and got run over by the Karnataka Express coming from the other side.
Published – January 23, 2025 10:36 pm IST
