Odisha Tragedy: Railways launches probe as death toll rises to 233 

Distressing news have been emerging last night as 230 people have lost their lives due to the Odisha tragedy. This major accident took place near Bahanaga Bazar railway station in Odisha’s Balasore district between three different trains – Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, and a goods train, as per ANI. 233 people have died in this crash, whereas more than 900 people have been injured and are currently being treated. Indian Railways have launched a high-level investigation into this Odisha tragedy which will be helmed by Commissioners of Railway Safety under the leadership of South Eastern Circle AM Chowdhary.   

India’s Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Odisha’s Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik promptly visited the crash site to take note of the situation and take further course of action. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself is expected to arrive in Odisha tonight and will likely visit the injured and the families of the bereaved. Quite recently, Vaishnaw announced that they would introduce the Kavach system on Indian rail tracks in the coming years, which uses radar technology to send warnings to trains and automatically activates the break system several hundred metres away from the approaching train. This Kavach system will be used to avoid any such train accidents in the future.  

However, only time will tell how the central and the state government will manage this situation and help the people who have suffered in this Odisha tragedy. 

Image source: ANI