Title - Teen death adds to train mishap toll

Sambalpur : The death toll in Friday’s accident in which an autorickshaw was hit by an express train has gone up to 14 with 17-year-old Sanjukta Rout succumbing to her injuries at Veer Surendra Sai Medical College and Hospital at Burla.Twelve of the victims, who hailed from Ainapalli village on the outskirts of the town, were cremated last evening. The village was wrapped in silence even today, mourning the dead, who were all daily-wage labourers.The Rourkela-Bhubaneswar Intercity Express had rammed into the autorickshaw at an unmanned level crossing at Khairpali, killing 13 persons, including the driver. Seven persons were injured and admitted to various hospitals for treatment. Among them was Sanjukta, who died early this morning.“All of them were agricultural labourers. They had gone to work. But they were unaware that death was waiting for them. The villagers will never forget August 24,” said Jagannath, a villager.Dilip Bhoi had asked his wife Anu Bhoi, 45, and daughter Aarati Bhoi, 16, not to go out for work. Dilip was speechless with sorrow after the accident that claimed the lives of both. Similarly, Jagdish Bhoi of the village is grief stricken after he lost his wife Champa, 35, and daughter Puja, 13, in the accident.“Schoolstudents were also in the autorickshaw. The only thing on their mind was to earn some money for their families. As all of them belonged to below poverty line category, earning some money was very important to them,” said Ranjan Bhoi, another villager.

This is the second major accident at an unmanned level crossing. In an earlier accident three years ago, 12 persons, including a newly-wed woman, had died after the Balangir-Bhubaneswar Intercity rammed into the SUV carrying a marriage party at village Dhanger in Bargarh district.

More recently on June 30 this year, the driver of a tractor died after the Sambalpur-Puri Intercity Express hit the tractor at an unmanned level crossing between Maneswar and Hatibari railway stations.

Even after so many accidents, 263 unmanned level crossings still exist under the Sambalpur railway division against 126 manned level crossings. A source said: “In the last 12 years, 57 people have died in 30 accidents at railway level crossings in Sambalpur division. Twenty-nine of the 30 accidents occurred at unmanned level crossings.”

Divisional railway manager A. K. Gupta said: “The department proposes to deploy guards at 150 unmanned level crossings and the proposal has been accepted in the case of 72 such crossings.” He also said the railways had proposed low-height subways at 168 unmanned crossings and road under-bridges at 10 unmanned crossings.