"Painful morning to wake up to," says NCP MP Supriya Sule on Odisha train accident

Supriya Sule. File Pic

Condoling the loss of lives in the train accident in Odisha, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule said that "it is a painful morning to wake up to".

Sule requested the Railway Ministry and the central government to set up a high-powered committee to find out why the cause of the accident.

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"It is a very painful morning to wake up to. We have lost many lives this morning in a very unfortunate train accident. I would request the Railways and the state authorities to intervene and help every person who is hurt. I would request the Railway Ministry and the Government of India to set up a high-powered committee to find out why this accident has happened," Sule told news agency ANI.

According to latest updates from the South Eastern Railway, the death toll in the Odisha train accident involving two express trains and a goods train reached 261.

The death toll from a three-train crash in Odisha's Balasore reached 261, South Eastern Railways told ANI on Saturday.

Injured passengers have been taken to hospitals of Gopalpur, Khantapara, Balasore, Bhadrak and Soro in the State.

As per the officials, over 900 were injured in the incident.

Railway officials said that the rescue operation has been completed at the derailment site and restoration work is going on.

The 12864 Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express which was on its way to Howrah got derailed. Meanwhile, the 12841 Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express which was coming from the opposite direction on the parallel track rammed into the derailed coaches and around 12 of its coaches hit the stationary goods train on the third track. The accident took place at 7 pm on Friday.

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw reached the spot on Saturday to supervise the rescue operation. Vaishnaw said that a detailed high-level inquiry will be conducted. The rail safety commissioner will conduct an independent inquiry, he added.

Vaishnaw mentioned that the focus right now is on rescue and relief operations following which restoration will be carried out.

The train crash, one of the deadliest in the country, took place in Balasore district about 250 km south of Kolkata and 170 km north of Bhubaneswar around 7 pm on Friday, prompting the Railway Ministry to order a probe. Three trains - the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express and a goods train were involved in the accident.

(With inputs from ANI)