RAYAGADA: Movement of trains between Rayagada and Titilagarh could not be restored on Thursday as restoration work on railway track between Doikalu and Ambodala was affected on Wednesday following heavy rain.
The torrential downpour had washed away railway tracks between Rayagada and Titilagarh leaving train services seriously affected in the region. As many as three wagons of a goods train derailed as more than 100 metres of the track was washed away between Doikalu and Ambodala stations in Rayagada-Titilagarh section. The train was on its way to Vedanta siding in Ambadola station.
East Coast Railway (ECoR) sources said both the lines will be repaired by Friday. A few goods trains will be run on the repaired stretch so that the track settles. Only after the track settles, Express and Passenger trains will be run on the track. Divisional Railway Manager, Sambalpur, Jayadeep Gupta, is camping at the site to oversee the restoration
work.
Meanwhile, the water level in major rivers and ‘nullahs’ has started receding as there was no rainfall since morning. A decomposed body was found near the temporary bridge at Chekkaguda village which is yet to be identified. People of Tala Sajja and Upara Sajja under Kalyansinghpur had constructed the temporary bridge in 2017 to ensure connectivity between the villages during monsoon. The bridge, however, was washed away in the rains last week.
Collector Pramod Kumar Behera said restoration work is going on in full swing and officials concerned have been directed to submit damage assessment report at the earliest. Free cooked food is being provided to people who have taken shelter in flood shelters. Officials of Agriculture department said while normal rainfall for the district in August is 273.7 mm, it had recorded 274.3 mm rain so far.
Repair Schedule
ECoR sources said both the damaged lines will be repaired by Friday
A few goods trains will be run on the repaired stretch so that the track settles
Only after the track settles, Express and Passenger trains will be run on the track