Northern Circle to begin probe from Monday: Railway Board on Utkal derailment

Member of Traffic Railway Board, Mohammad Jamshed on Sunday assured that strict action will be taken against those found guilty prima facie in the Utkal Express derailment, adding that investigation will be done to see if any guidelines were not followed.

"It was an unfortunate incident, around 20 people died and 92 were injured. As per the directions of Railway Ministry, strict action will be taken against those found guilty prima facie. We have manuals for every work that is being carried out therefore we will go through those manuals and see if any rules and guidelines were broken," Jamshed said while addressing a press conference.

He added that traffic on the line will be restored around 10 p.m. tonight, adding that Commissioner of Railway Safety, Northern Circle will begin enquiry from tomorrow.

"Each and every clue will be preserved for the investigation. The commissioner will see whose responsibility was it to handle the matter and why did this happen. In the enquiry it will also be ascertained that which kind of work was underway on the tracks that time. The audio clips which we received through media shows a conversation between a railway worker and media person where it has been told that there were some work going on the tracks which led to negligence. But first we will have to see that audio's authenticity as well," he asserted.

Jamshed further said that every day tracks are patrolled and if there are issues related to that then required measures are taken.

"We are trying our best to provide medical treatments to all those who have been injured and ex gratia will also be given," he added.

Earlier in the day an FIR was lodged against unknown persons under various sections including 304 A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) (death due to negligence).

Other charges include 287 -negligent conduct w.r.t machinery, 337- causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety, 338- causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal security and 427- mischief causing damage.

Sections under the Railways Act include 151-damage to or destruction of certain railway properties and 154 - endangering safety of persons travelling by railway by rash or negligent act or omission.

Meanwhile, all the trains on the Meerut line have been cancelled or diverted till 6 p.m.

Affected rail route is expected to be cleared and traffic is likely to be restored by 7 p.m. today.

Over 100 passengers have been injured and 23 are dead in this unfortunate accident.

Many injured person have discharged after providing first aid assistance. Injured passengers have been admitted in Meerut and Muzaffarnagar Hospitals.