BAHANAGA: As the death toll mounted after rescue operations intensified, police at body identification sites and hospitals were flooded with missing complaints in Balasore on Saturday. Sources said at least 35 cases of missing complaints were received by police which registered grievances of those coming in from West Bengal in search of their family members, friends and relatives.
Crying uncontrollably, people moved to the accident spot at Bahanaga Bazar Station, Bahanaga School as well as Balasore district headquarters hospital (DHH) seeking the whereabouts of their close ones with whom they had lost contact after India’s deadliest train mishap.
Deep Chatterjee rushed from Jamshedpur in search of their dear friend Subham Kumar who belongs to Purluia. “I came to know from his parents that Subham is missing since yesterday’s mishap. Once I reached Bahanaga, I spoke to officials and searched for him among the dead bodies,” he said.
So far, he has not been able to trace his friend. Left without any option, Deep lodged a missing complaint with the police. Sk Mitu from Howrah reached Balasore looking for his brother on Saturday morning. He visited three to four places and even searched for his sibling from over 150 dead bodies kept at Bahanaga school but failed to trace him. Mitu’s brother was travelling to Chennai in the ill-fated Coromandel Express.
Purna Chandra Giri, a resident of Purba Medinipur, said he traced and identified two bodies of his close ones and was asked to receive them at Bahanaga school. However, he was handed only one dead body at the school premises.
“As I found another body missing, I visited the North Odisha Chamber of Commerce and Industry where I was not allowed to search the bodies. I have filed a grievance with the police and rescue team in this regard and waiting for their help,” Giri told TNIE. Officials said steps are being taken by both the RPF as well as local police in extending all support to people in identifying their kin.