CHENNAI: The dangers of jaywalking along rail tracks came to the forefront yet again as three men were run over by a train on Sunday night.
All three, in their 20s and reportedly in an inebriated condition, were attempting to cross a section of track between Mambalam and Kodambakkam stations.
The deceased have been identified as A Karthik (24), J Shashank (20) and M Manoj (25), who were residents of Kodambakkam.
The incident happened around 10.35 pm when a local Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) train, from Chennai Beach to Tambaram, was passing by. The Government Railway Police (GRP) said the three, along with Karthik’s brother, were drinking near the track after scaling a compound wall. It was then they decided to cross the section. “They were probably not aware of the oncoming train. We were told that brother tried to warn the three but to no avail,” a GRP officer said.
While Shashank, an engineering student, and Manoj, were killed on the spot, the seriously injured Karthik was handed over to the Mambalam station where an 108 ambulance was summoned, the police said. However, after being examined by the paramedics, Karthik too was declared dead.
Karthik, a Class X dropout, was married and working in a private company.
Their bodies were shifted to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital. Autopsy was done on Monday, following which the bodies were handed over to the respective families. A case under section 174 of CrPC (unnatural death) was registered and the death is being investigated by the railway police.
Incidents of train runover deaths are on the rise, despite the efforts of GRP and railways in creating awareness among public about the dangers of crossing tracks.
In May this year, four persons were killed on the Beach-Tambaram line in separate incidents on a single day. Trespassing into railway property and walking along railway tracks are punishable offences under Section 147 of the Indian Railways Act.