TN train crash: Signal set for main track, but train entered loop line
CHENNAI: A day after the train accident at Kavaraipettai, 40 kilometres away from Chennai, AM Chowdhary, Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS), Southern Circle, reached the spot to initiate a detailed enquiry.
According to official sources, the Mysuru-Darbhanga Bagmati Express was given a green signal to proceed on the main line toward Gudur around 8.30 pm on Friday, while running between the Ponneri and Gummidipoondi. However, the train entered the loop line at Kavaraipettai station, where the freight train was parked.
The investigation has been launched to find how the train got diverted to the loop line when the signal was supposedly set for the main line, said an official. The possibility of human negligence is also being looked into, added an official source.
The CRS’s inspection covered the tracks, locomotive, signalling points and blocks, station electronic interlocking systems, control panels, and other key safety, signalling, and operational aspects.
He recorded statements from over 30 railway employees, including the two loco pilots of the Bagmati Express, the motorman and train manager of the Chennai-Sulurpetta MEMU that was trailing the express, station masters and section controllers of Kavaraipettai and Ponneri stations, senior section engineers in the Ponneri-Gudur section, and the Mysuru division depot engineer responsible for secondary maintenance of the rake. Additionally, he spoke with injured passengers admitted to the railway hospital.
The Korukkupet railway police has registered a case to investigate the accident based on the complaint by M Muni Prasand Babu, the station master of Kavaraipettai station.
Meanwhile, official sources confirmed the NIA, RPF, and Tamil Nadu State Police are also investigating the issue and have not ruled out the possibility of the outdoor signalling gears or the switch point’s connecting rods being tampered with.
The open bolts and missing nuts at the site, which may have also happened due to the accident, have also raised suspicion over involvement of outsiders. “A tampering incident was reported at Ponneri station last month, which is being investigated by state police and the RPF,” an official said.
“The CRS is considering all potential causes and is expected to release preliminary findings in the next 10-15 days.” added the official.
Meanwhile, Retired Principal Chief Signal and Telecom Engineer (PCSTE) of Southern Railway R Baskaran said that based on the data logger of Kavaraipettai station, the cause of the collision was unlikely to be due to a signal failure.
“The signal and point was for the Bagmati Express to go straight through the main line. However, a possible derailment or some other issue may have happened, which caused the train to go into the loop line and cause the collision,” Baskaran said, after he was sent the 40- second clip of the data logger obtained by TNIE from a railway source.
Another top retired official said the data logger shows the Bagmati Express occupying both main line and loop line, which was a rare phenomenon called ‘Two-roading’. This could have been because of a track fault, the retired official, seeking anonymity, said.
Quick look
A retired official said data logger shows the Bagmati Express occupying both main line and loop line, which is a rare phenomenon called ‘Two-roading’
Kavaraipettai residents rose to the occasion; many on helped ferry stranded passengers from the station to the highway on bikes
CRS recorded statements from over 30 railway employees, including the two loco pilots of Bagmati Express
NIA, RPF, and state police are also investigating and have not ruled out possibility of tampering of outdoor signalling gears or switch point’s connecting rods
(With inputs from Siddharth Prabhakar)