Days After Balasore Train Tragedy, Six Labourers Run Over By Goods Train In Odisha's Jajpur

The six labourers who were killed at the Jajpur Keonjhar Road railway station had sheltered from heavy rain under the goods train when it started rolling.

New Delhi: Days after a major accident involving three trains in Odisha's Balasore district, at least six labourers were killed and two others critically injured in the state's Jajpur district after being run over by a goods train on Wednesday. The labourers at the Jajpur Keonjhar Road railway station had sheltered from heavy rain under the goods train when it started rolling.

"There was a sudden thunderstorm. The labourers were working at a railway siding where a goods train was standing stationary. They sheltered under it but unfortunately, the goods train which did not have an engine attached to it started moving causing the accident," the news agency PTI quoted said a railway spokesperson as saying.

In a statement, the East Coast Railway said, "The contractual labourers engaged by a contractor for railway work took shelter under the stabled rake to get protection from the wind and rain of Norwester near Jajpur Keonjar Road (station)."

The reserve rake without an engine started rolling due to the thunderstorm causing the accident, it added.

The injured persons were admitted to SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed deep grief over the unfortunate incident and announced Rs 5 lakh ex-gratia for the next to the kin of deceased persons. He also directed officials concerned to provide quality treatment to the injured workers and wished them a speedy recovery.

The incident occurred five days after a major accident involving three trains in Odisha's Balasore district, which killed 288 people and injured over 1,100. The accident took place when the Coromandel Express crashed into a stationary goods train, derailing most of its coaches around 7 pm on June 2. A few coaches of Coromandel toppled over the last few coaches of the Bengaluru-Howrah Express which was passing by at the same time.

Investigators are looking into possible human error, signal failure and other possible causes behind the three-train crash.