Odisha Train Accident: LIC Relaxes Claim Settlement Process For Victims

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New Delhi: The claim settlement procedure for the victims of the Balasore railway catastrophe is being streamlined, according to a statement made on Saturday ( June 4, 2023), by the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). In a statement, LIC Chairman Siddhartha Mohanty announced a number of relaxation measures.

To ease the struggles of LIC policy claimants as well as Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana claimants, LIC announced a number of incentives. A list of fatalities released by the police, the railroads, or any other state or federal authority may be considered as proof of death in lieu of death certificates that have been registered, according to LIC.

A specific help desk and a contact centre number (022-68276827) have also been established by the national insurance at the divisional and branch levels to assist claimants and address claim-related questions. According to the LIC statement, every effort would be made to contact claimants and hasten claim settlement.

Mohanty also offered his condolences for the tragic Coromandel Expresss disaster that claimed so many lives. In the statement, he said: "We are very saddened by the horrific railway disaster that occurred on Friday in Balasore, Odisha. LIC is devoted to helping anyone impacted and will move swiftly to resolve claims and offer financial compensation.

Around 7 o'clock on Friday night, a railway accident involving three trains—the Coromandel Express, SMVT Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, and a cargo train—took place close to the Bahanga Bazar station in Odisha's Balasore district, around 250 kilometres south of Kolkata and 170 kilometres north of Bhubaneswar.

Over 1,100 people have been hurt, and 288 people have already died as a result of the catastrophe. According to government data, the Odisha train catastrophe was one of the worst in India.

Other terrible train accidents that occurred in India include the 1981 Bihar Rail accident, which claimed the lives of at least 800 people, the 1995 Firozabad train accident, which claimed at least 350 lives, the 1999 Gaisal train accident in West Bengal, which claimed the lives of nearly 300 people, the 2005 Velugonda train accident, which claimed the lives of nearly 100 people, and the 1988 Peruman train accident in Kerala, which claimed at least 106 lives.