Kanchanjunga Express train accident in Bengal kills 9, some feared trapped
.webp)
At least 9 people were killed, and about 40 were injured in a train collision in West Bengal's Darjeeling district on Monday. According to officials, a goods train collided with the Sealdah-bound Kanchanjunga Express, causing the derailment of three compartments of the passenger train.
Some people are feared to be trapped inside the toppled carriages, and a frantic rescue operation to find them has been launched.
A locomotive on the goods train hit the Kanchanjunga Express from the rear. The collision took place around 9 am, according to Northern Railway officials.
The officials do not expect a high number of casualties since two of the three compartments of the Kanchanjunga Express had goods stored in them.
A video of the incident has surfaced on social media, showing passengers in a state of panic and fear as they scramble to safety, with the two trains visible in the background. Another photo showed locals gathered around the accident site.
The 13174 Kanchanjunga Express was travelling from Tripura’s Agartala when the incident took place near Rangapani, close to New Jalpaiguri station, officials said.
The goods train was on its way to Kolkata from Agartala. Images showed its wagon toppled around the tracks while a compartment of the Kanchanjunga Express was suspended in mid-air following the collision.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed shock over the tragic incident and said that emergency services had been rushed to the spot. "While details are awaited... DM, SP, doctors, ambulances, and disaster teams have been rushed to the site," she said in a post on 'X', adding that action on a war footing has been "initiated."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu also condoled the loss of lives in the incident. Modi said he has spoken to the officials and that Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw is headed to West Bengal to take a stock of the situation.
The Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) has announced a compensation of Rs 200,000 for next of kin of each deceased persons and Rs 50,000 for the injured, the PMO said.
Earlier, Vaishnaw said that the injured persons were shifted to the hospital while a rescue operation is underway. "Unfortunate accident in North Frontier Railway zone... Railways, NDRF, and SDRF are working in close coordination. Senior officials have reached the site," he said in a post on 'X'.
Other Latest News
.webp)
The AAP alleged on Wednesday that when there was a possibility of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal getting bail from the Supreme Court in a money laundering case, the BJP panicked and got him arrested in a "fake case" by the CBI.
Earlier in the day, a Delhi court allowed the CBI to formally arrest Kejriwal in the Delhi excise policy case.
.webp)
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla recognised Rahul Gandhi as the leader of opposition on Wednesday, a day after the Congress communicated its decision to name him for the position to the Lok Sabha Secretariat.
In a notification issued on Wednesday, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said Gandhi, leader of the Indian National Congress, had officially been recognised as the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha with effect from June 9.
.webp)
Telecom operators on Tuesday placed bids for spectrum worth Rs 11,000 crore on the first day of the 5G spectrum auction, sources at the Department of Communication (DoT) said. While auctions will continue on Wednesday, the activity level has reached 90 per cent, they added.
Five rounds of bidding saw operators focusing mostly on five of the eight bands on offer — 800 megahertz (MHz), 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz, and 2,500 MHz — data released by the DoT showed.
.webp)
The Adani group plans to invest up to Rs 1.3 trillion in 2024-25 (FY25) to expand its capacity across its portfolio companies and will raise up to $3 billion (Rs 25,000 crore) in equity this financial year to fund the projects.
Among its portfolio companies, Adani Green Energy will invest Rs 34,000 crore to expand its facilities in Gujarat’s Khavda, said Adani Group Chief Financial Officer Jugeshinder ‘Robbie’ Singh here on Tuesday.
.webp)
Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi’s) experiment with the same-day settlement cycle has found few takers during its soft launch phase, rolled out for just 25 stocks.
Since its introduction in March, the T+0 mechanism — an optional settlement cycle, parallel to the mainstream T+1 cycle where trades are settled on a next-day basis — has logged a turnover of just Rs 5.7 lakh on the NSE, with six of the 25 scrips not recording even a single trade. Of the total, over 80 per cent, or Rs 4.63 lakh, was registered on March 28, the launch day.
.webp)
.webp)
.webp)
.webp)
.webp)
