COIMBATORE: Bodies of the five pilgrims, who died on June 10 due to heat exhaustion while travelling from Agra to Coimbatore, were brought to Coimbatore and cremated on Thursday. The bodies of the deceased – Deivanai (68) and Kaladevi (59) from Ondipudur, Pachaya Gounder (80) from Kollimalai in The Nilgiris, Balakrishnan (67) and Subbaraya (71), from Coonoor in The Nilgiris – were brought to Coimbatore by flight and train on Thursday early morning.
While bodies of Deivanai, Kaladevi and Pachaya Gounder were cremated at Ondipudur and those of Subbaraya and Balakrishnan were cremated at Coonoor on Thursday.
As many as 77 people – mostly elderly people – started their journey from Coimbatore on June 3. After visiting temples in and around Uttar Pradesh, they came to Agra Railway Station on June 10 to catch the Kerala Express (New Delhi-Thiruvananthapuram), which was scheduled to leave the station at 2.45 pm, said the crew members.
At 2.15 pm, Kaladevi started vomiting while she was seated on a platform bench. Subsequently, she collapsed and was rushed to a hospital, where she died. Others, except the group leader, K Sundaramurthi, boarded the train and started their journey back home. Within 15 minutes of the journey’s start, four more passengers collapsed.
“After the incident, officials from the Railway and Uttar Pradesh helped us reach our destination. They did not demand any money for handing over the bodies after autopsy. They also booked reserved seats for us the next day. Deivanai and Pachaya Gounder’s bodies were transported along with us. Till we reached Coimbatore junction, the Railway officials provided 10 kg ice at each station the train stopped,” he said.