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Utkal Express tragedy: New negligence theories emerge

  • It is said that station masters of both the stations had no awareness about the repair work, although it was going on for days.
  • 4 local officials were suspended and top three officials were sent on leave. One official is also said to have been transferred after prima facie findings confirming lapses in maintenance works.
  • Even if the repair works were being conducted, it should have followed the standard protocol for the same.
Utkal Express tragedy New negligence theories emerge

More than 22 people were killed in the ill-fated Utkal Express derailment. While the security operation is still on, investigators are trying to figure out what exactly went wrong. Various theories have also emerged, apart from the one making the rounds regarding railway negligence. Among many, the one version that is becoming more dominant are the lapses in maintenance work. 

According to a report by the Hindu, 4 local officials were suspended and top three officials were sent on leave. One official is also said to have been transferred after prima facie findings confirming lapses in maintenance works. Secretary-level officer and Railway Board Member Engineering, were allegedly sent on leave. Meanwhile, the divisional engineer and the senior divisional engineer of the railway section were suspended while the central track engineer of the Northern Railways was tranferred.

According to the investigation, it was found that welding work was underway near the Khatauli railway station in Uttar Pradesh, leaving a portion of the track without rails when the Utkal Express ran over it, thus derailing the train. It is also being said that there were lapses at multiple levels in the track maintenance work, which were being carried out without due permission. It is said that the track maintenance work was routine and could have been carried out a day after too. However, that was not followed.

Protocol not followed

The dicisional engineer, in consultation with the divisional operating manager, is required to take a written consent from the station master to get the traffic block during which the maintenance work is to be conducted. One of the railway officials said, "Nobody is authorised to open the rail track without taking a (traffic) block and that too in the face of a running train — it is criminal. They started maintaining the track without the block."

A second theory

The two station masters of Katauli and Muzaffarnagar had no clue that there were repair works going on enroute. The Muzaffarnagar station master, for instance, saw a line of green dots on the screen of his monitor, indicating the track was clear between Katauli and Muzaffarnagar. However, within minutes he received a call that the train had delayed. He later said that there were no red dots on the map, which misguided him. Speaking to the Indian Express, Sharma said, "If maintenance work was going on near Khatauli, a section should have been red on the screen. The driver should have either been asked to stop or pass the area slowly, depending on the work being carried out."

Even the warning boards had been wiped out and there were no specific instructions for the train to stop or slow down, said both the station masters. However, residents near the accident site said that the construction work was going on for days and even clamps and bolts were found scattered when the train arrived at a speed of 100 km/hour. In a clear case of miscommunication, a northern railways official said, "It is a major coordination lapse. Our repairmen had removed a small section of the track and were in the process of replacing it when the Utkal Express came down the tracks at a speed of 100 kmph. Clamps and tools have been found near the accident site to indicate repair work was underway. The officials at Khatauli should have known. The PWI (permanent way inspector) should have informed them."

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