The victims had gathered near a level crossing to watch celebrations for the Hindu festival Dussehra.
At least 58 people are dead and dozens more are injured after being hit by a train in the city of Amritsar in northern India.
The victims had gathered near a level crossing to watch celebrations for Dussehra, a Hindu festival.
Railway officials told The Times of India the victims had spilled onto
the tracks to get a good view of a burning effigy of the demon Ravana - a
traditional of the annual gala.
The train was travelling from Jalandhar to the city in Punjab state,
with TV channel Times Now reporting that those struck were unable to
hear it approach due to the overbearing sound of firecrackers being let
off.
The state police commissioner said 58 bodies have been recovered, but there could be more to come.
The speeding train did not stop following the accident, which also saw at least 60 people taken to hospital.
It happened at about 7pm local time (2.30pm UK time) and a number of rail services were cancelled afterwards.
Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi, who earlier in the day attended a
Dussehra celebration in Delhi, confirmed that families of the victims
would receive "financial relief" from the government.
He also tweeted: "Extremely saddened by the train accident in Amritsar.
"The tragedy is heart-wrenching. My deepest condolences to the families
of those who lost their loved ones and I pray that the injured recover
quickly."
Piyush Goyal, the country's railways minister, said "immediate relief and rescue operations" were under way.
In the aftermath, crowds rushed to the scene and lambasted railway
officials for not taking further precautions in view of the festival.
The shocking scenes, which were captured by mobile phones and posted on
social media, are the latest in an increasingly long line of accidents
to beset the country's creaking rail network, which dates back to the
colonial era.
In February, four elephants were killed after they were hit by a train
travelling from Guwahati to Silchar, about 110 miles away from its
departure station in the state of Assam.
Another five were killed in December when they were hit by a train in
the same state, with 60 thought to having died on the tracks in the
whole of 2017 - and 110 the year before that.
Last November, 13 coaches of an express train derailed in the north of
the country, killing three people and leaving another nine with
injuries.
And in the same month in 2016, a similar disaster near Pukhrayan, a town outside Kanpur, killed 146 people and injured 226.
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At least 58 people are dead and dozens more are injured after being hit by a train in the city of Amritsar in northern India.
The victims had gathered near a level crossing to watch celebrations for Dussehra, a Hindu festival.
Railway officials told The Times of India the victims had spilled onto
the tracks to get a good view of a burning effigy of the demon Ravana - a
traditional of the annual gala.
The train was travelling from Jalandhar to the city in Punjab state,
with TV channel Times Now reporting that those struck were unable to
hear it approach due to the overbearing sound of firecrackers being let
off.
The state police commissioner said 58 bodies have been recovered, but there could be more to come.
The speeding train did not stop following the accident, which also saw at least 60 people taken to hospital.
It happened at about 7pm local time (2.30pm UK time) and a number of rail services were cancelled afterwards.
Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi, who earlier in the day attended a
Dussehra celebration in Delhi, confirmed that families of the victims
would receive "financial relief" from the government.
He also tweeted: "Extremely saddened by the train accident in Amritsar.
"The tragedy is heart-wrenching. My deepest condolences to the families
of those who lost their loved ones and I pray that the injured recover
quickly."
Piyush Goyal, the country's railways minister, said "immediate relief and rescue operations" were under way.
In the aftermath, crowds rushed to the scene and lambasted railway
officials for not taking further precautions in view of the festival.
The shocking scenes, which were captured by mobile phones and posted on
social media, are the latest in an increasingly long line of accidents
to beset the country's creaking rail network, which dates back to the
colonial era.
In February, four elephants were killed after they were hit by a train
travelling from Guwahati to Silchar, about 110 miles away from its
departure station in the state of Assam.
Another five were killed in December when they were hit by a train in
the same state, with 60 thought to having died on the tracks in the
whole of 2017 - and 110 the year before that.
Last November, 13 coaches of an express train derailed in the north of
the country, killing three people and leaving another nine with
injuries.
And in the same month in 2016, a similar disaster near Pukhrayan, a town outside Kanpur, killed 146 people and injured 226.
https://www.geezgo.com/sps/43562
Join
Geezgo for free. Use Geezgo's end-to-end encrypted Chat with your
Closenets (friends, relatives, colleague etc) in personalized ways.>>
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