Title - Train derails near Palwal, railway schedule hit

The derailment of a goods train near Palwal in Haryana and early morning smog disrupted the schedules of more than 30 trains entering and leaving the capital. The derailment was reported around 1.10 am on Wednesday. Northern Railway sources said the engine and a coach of the goods train had derailed due to technical reasons but no one was injured. Of the three rail lines at Palwal station, the first was restored at 5.10 am. The other two were cleared for use around 10.55 am.

Five trains — Ferozepur-Mumbai Express, Chhattisgarh Express, Swarn Jayanti Express, Udyan Abha Toofan Express and Amritsar-Mumbai Golden Temple Express — were diverted on the Ghaziabad-Tundla-Agra section while six, including the Agra-Palwal passenger and Mathura-Ghaziabad passenger, were cancelled.

The schedule of six trains — including Niazamuddin-Coimbatore Express, Hazrat Nizamuddin-Ernakulam Mangla Express and Nizamuddin-Yashwantpur Karnataka Express — were rescheduled. Local EMU services were the worst hit and people were forced to use buses. Severe jams were reported in the morning from the Old Faridabad area.

Railways have decided to use more than 500 fog safety devices for trains to tackle fog this winter. Northern Railway has already acquired most of these devices.