BHUBANESWAR: The death toll in the train mishap on June 2 has been revised to 275 by the Odisha government. Announcing the revised death toll, Chief Secretary PK Jena told media persons that the confusion was because some bodies were counted twice at the accident spot and then at the hospital again. He said that after detailed verification and report by the district collector, the final death toll in the train tragedy has been put at 275.
The Chief Secretary said out of the 1,175 injured passengers admitted to hospitals in Soro, Balasore, Bhadrak and Cuttack, 793 have been discharged while 382 are still under treatment. The treatment cost is being borne by the state government, he added.
So far, 88 bodies have been identified and 78 have been handed over while 187 are yet to be identified. The Chief Secretary said 170 bodies have been shifted to various hospitals in Bhubaneswar on Sunday and the identities of the victims could not be ascertained in Balasore district.
The bodies have been shifted to the mortuaries of Capital Hospital, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), SUM Hospital, Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS) and AMRI. Photographs of the bodies have been uploaded on the websites of the Special Relief Commissioner, Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA) and Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) for identification purposes, said Jena.
Balasore Collector has started the process to shift another 17 unidentified bodies to Bhubaneswar. "In case, some bodies cannot be identified, then a medico-legal process will be initiated. DNA or fingerprinting can be carried out to ascertain their identities," he added. Help desks have also been set up at entry points, Cuttack Railway Station, Cuttack Bus Stand, SCB Medical College and Hospital, Bhubaneswar Railway Station, Baramunda Bus Stand and Biju Patnaik International Airport, he said. He also added that a helpline number 1929 has also been activated to render assistance.
BMC has also arranged MoBus to facilitate the travel of the family members/relatives of the victims to the hospitals where the bodies have been preserved.