Odisha train crash: Bahanaga Bazar railway station shut for CBI probe

BHUBANESWAR: The South Eastern Railway (SER) has temporarily shut down Bahanaga Bazar railway station in Balasore district after the CBI, which is investigating the incident, sealed the station and seized the log book, relay panel and other equipment.

Though train services have been normalised after the restoration of tracks, no passenger train will halt at the station now. “The station was closed for passengers since the day of the accident. It will resume operation after the CBI probe is over,” SER CPRO Aditya Kumar Chaudhary told The New Indian Express. The Indian Railways on Friday claimed 288 passengers were killed and 920 injured in the deadly train crash at Bahanaga. Of the total 1,208 affected passengers, ex gratia and compensation have been provided in 673 cases and the remaining are under process.   

Railway sources said, altogether 2,296 passengers were travelling in Howrah Superfast Express and Coromandel Express, which collided following the derailment of the latter which rammed into a stationary goods train on the June 2 evening.

While 211 passengers were declared dead at the spot by medical teams mobilised from Balasore and Bhadrak, the rest either received dead at different hospitals or succumbed while undergoing treatment. Railway sources said, 160 passengers were critically injured and 372 sustained minor injuries. As many as 379 passengers left after first aid at the spot or nearby hospitals.

Even as 81 bodies stored in containers at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, are still to be identified and relatives of missing passengers are waiting for DNA reports, the Centre and state governments are halfway through disbursing ex gratia and compensation.

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“After thorough verification, 829 passengers, including 288 deceased, were found to be eligible for ex gratia and compensation. The list included passengers from both reserve and general coaches. The railways had also announced ex gratia for ticketless travellers who died or were injured in the train crash,” said a railway official. Ex gratia of around Rs 23  crore has been given to the deceased and the injured.

While 24 ex-gratia payments against death cases are under process, the aid will be given to 81 others after the identification of bodies. Similarly, compensation disbursement for 12 passengers with grievous injuries and 39 with simple injuries is under process.