Priya Aditi
In Telangana, three bogies of the Falaknuma Express Bommaipally and Pagidipally caught fire. CH Rakesh, the South Central Railway’s chief public relations officer, stated that all passengers disembarked and no injuries were reported. He added that the fire had broken out on three cars, S4, S5, and S6. This news comes days after an investigation into the Odisha train disaster identified “wrong signalling” as the primary cause of the Balasore accident and highlighted multiple signalling and communications (S&T) department failures. However, according to the investigation findings submitted by a high-level investigation team, the tragedy could have been avoided if the previous warning signs had been highlighted, as reported by PTI.
The independent Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) submitted the investigation report to the Railway Board. The report acknowledged the signaling deficiencies but emphasized that the S&T staff could have taken corrective action had the station manager of Bahanaga Bazar, where the accident occurred, apprised them of the repeated red flags regarding the switches connecting the parallel tracks.
In addition, the absence of an approved circuit diagram for the replacement of the electric lifting barrier at level crossing gate 94 at Bahanaga Bazar station led to improper cabling, according to the report. It disclosed that a team of field supervisors deviated from the wiring diagram and failed to accurately replicate it.
Also read this:India Joins Champions Group Of Global Crisis Response Group(GCRG) On UN Secretary-General’s Invitation: MEA
A similar incident occurred on May 16, 2022 at the Bankra Nayabaz station in the Khargpur division of South Eastern Railway due to incorrect wiring and cable faults, according to the report. It was asserted that the accident at BNBR could have been avoided if corrective measures had been implemented after that incident to address the issue of improper wiring.
