Fault in track, overspeed led to Dibrugarh Exp derailment, says prelim probe report
It also came to fore during the probe that the track was found shifted by 4 metres and they were not tightened properly
Even though the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) probe into the July 18 Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailment near Gonda in Uttar Pradesh is yet to come to any conclusion, a preliminary probe conducted by a six-member team of railway officials has revealed that train’s speed, officials’ ignorance and problem in track among other reasons led to the mishap in which four people had died.
In an 18-page long report explained in 36 points, it was highlighted the accident happened due to a fault in the track. The train was supposed to be run at a speed of 30 km on the track but the loco pilot was not informed about it. He got a caution two minutes after the derailment. He ran the train at a speed of 86 km/hour, the report says.
It also came to fore during the probe that the track was found shifted by 4 metres and they were not tightened properly. While five out of the six officers said the reason for the accident was the negligence of the engineering department, one said brake was not applied properly.
As per reports, 41 railway officers and employees associated with the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh train were summoned to the DRM office in Lucknow where Commissioner of Railway Safety Pranjeev Saxena recorded their statements.
The train’s loco pilot Tribhuvan Narayan and assistant loco pilot Raj told the 6-member investigation team that the train left Motiganj station at 2.28 pm at a speed of 25 kmph. There was a strong jolt at the point of kilometre number 638/12 on the railway track. The pressure started decreasing with a rattling sound.
The panto was brought down using emergency brakes in the train running at a speed of 86 kmph. Panto or pantograph is an apparatus mounted on the roof of a train to collect power from overhead tension wire. apparatus mounted on the roof of a train to collect power from overhead tension wire.
When the driver looked back, the bogies of the train had already derailed. He turned on the engine’s flash light and sent assistant loco pilot Raj to protect the adjacent line.
The report says that the track had spread up to 3 metres due to which the wheel of the train came off. When the loco pilot got a shock, he applied emergency brakes. The train stopped after 400 metres, but by then 19 bogies had derailed. During this, the track was damaged up to a distance of 350 metres.
According to the report, the rail track was not tied properly. The fault was detected on the track at 1.30 pm. The Motiganj station master was given a caution memo to run the train at 30 km per hour speed at 2.30 pm, two minutes after the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh train passed at 2.28 pm.
That is, it was told that the train has to be run at a maximum speed of 30 km per hour on the track. After finding faults in the IMR (immediate removal) of the track, security should have been maintained on the site till the caution order was received, which was not done.
Due to this, the train derailed and the fault of which lies with the engineering department, the report says. The key-man had informed about the fault in the track 4 days ago but it was not removed in time.
As per the report, the track was found shifted by 4 metres after the accident. The track was found spread on the right side. The reason for it is said to be pressure on the welding. The generator power coach derailed after the engine. Its disc wheel and secondary damper were found damaged. The trolley was sunk in the pebbles.
The investigation team also recorded the statements of six superintendents, including traffic inspector, Gonda, GC Srivastava, chief loco inspector Dilip Kumar, senior section engineer, Gonda, Ved Prakash Meena, senior section engineer, Mankapur, PK Singh.
Senior section engineer PK Singh has raised questions over the report. “The report has been prepared without looking at the facts, which is absolutely wrong. I do not agree with the joint report at all,” he said expressing disagreement on 11 points.