Criminal Negligence Case Opened by Police in Indian Train Crash

Ministers Under Fire for Alleged Blame-Shifting in Friday's Tragic Disaster Resulting in 275 Fatalities

Police in the Indian state of Odisha have filed a criminal case of "death by negligence" in relation to the train crash on Friday that resulted in the loss of 275 lives. However, critics argue that the government is attempting to shift blame for the disaster. The police report does not explicitly identify any individual as responsible but mentions that the investigation will uncover the culpability of specific railway employees.

Preliminary reports suggest that a signal failure caused the Coromandel Express train to switch tracks onto the loop line on Friday evening. Unfortunately, a stationary freight train loaded with heavy iron ore occupied that track. The collision between the two trains was so severe that carriages from the express, carrying over 1,200 passengers, overturned onto the opposite tracks, derailing the oncoming Howrah super fast express train. The incident resulted in catastrophic consequences. A two-day rescue operation, involving the national disaster response force and numerous volunteers, was carried out to extricate survivors and retrieve bodies from the wreckage. However, many relatives have struggled to locate the remains of their loved ones, as the bodies were often badly disfigured. Over 100 bodies still remain unidentified.

The death toll may continue to rise, given that more than 300 of the 1,175 injured individuals remain in hospitals, with some in critical condition.As of Monday, passenger and freight trains have resumed service on the affected route, which is one of India's oldest and busiest railway lines. Netting has been placed over the mangled carriages that still lie beside the tracks to shield them from the view of passengers.

The Railway Minister, Ashwini Vaishnaw, and members of the railway board have highlighted the failure of the track management system as the focal point of the investigation. This system is responsible for automatically coordinating and controlling the signals for approaching trains, ensuring they are always directed to empty tracks. It appears that this automatic "interlocking system" malfunctioned on Friday, diverting the Coromandel Express train onto the loop track. Vaishnaw, who faces calls for resignation, stated that the "root cause and the people responsible for the criminal act" have been determined. However, he refrained from disclosing whether the failure resulted from technical faults, human error, or sabotage.

The signalling system in question is utilised across India's extensive 40,000-mile railway network. In response to the incident, the railway board has ordered a comprehensive examination of the system, with all 19 zones in the country required to submit safety reports by the following week.

The government has also requested the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), a government agency, to initiate a criminal investigation into the collision, indicating that arrests could be made. A CBI team visited the site on Monday evening to ascertain if any criminal tampering was involved in the signal failure. During his visit to the site on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated, "Those found guilty will be severely punished."

The Commissioner of Railway Safety has launched an investigation, and a report is expected within two weeks. The Chair of the Railway Board will update the Prime Minister and senior officials on the progress of the investigation on Tuesday.

Opponents of the Modi government have accused it of attempting to divert attention to an investigation into individual criminal negligence instead of taking responsibility for the disaster and addressing systemic safety issues in the railway network.

A parallel occurrence has been revealed wherein a comparable incident took place in February in Karnataka, wherein an interlocking system failure was involved. Thankfully, the vigilance of the train driver averted a potential disaster as they promptly detected the issue and prevented the train from veering onto the incorrect track, narrowly avoiding a collision. During that time, the Principal Chief Operations Manager of South Western Railway voiced apprehensions about the failure in an internal communication addressed to the Railway Minister, underscoring the urgent requirement for corrective actions and raising awareness among staff members to prevent significant accidents.