Odisha: Train Accident Averted Near Balasore, Indian Railways Suspend Staff

A MEMU train loco pilot averted disaster in Odisha when he detected an error in the track's endpoint and swiftly applied emergency brake.

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A station manager and a pointsman of the South Eastern Railways were suspended on Wednesday after a MEMU train narrowly escaped accident near Nilgiri Road station in Odisha, a railway official said. The two - Nilgiri Road station manager Subas Sethy and pointsman Sheikh Mohammad Khalip were suspended by the South Eastern Railway's Kharagpur division on charges of negligence and dereliction of duty, the official said.

The MEMU train narrowly escaped disaster near Nilgiri Road railway station in Balasore district on Tuesday due to the alertness of the loco pilot of Bhadrak-Balasore MEMU train. The Bhadrak-Balasore MEMU train had entered a loop line track, where maintenance work was underway.

The loco pilot averted disaster when he detected an error in the track's endpoint and swiftly applied emergency brake. He then reversed the train towards Balasore.

“The train was travelling at a speed of 7-8 km per hour and the track had been set in the opposite direction due to the ongoing construction work,” the loco pilot said.