Gonda train accident: Death toll rises to four, number of injured at 31

Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailment in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh kills four, injures 31; high-level investigation underway.

The death toll in the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailment in Uttar Pradesh's Gonda has risen to four, while 31 people were injured in the incident, an official said on July 19.

Eight coaches of the train had derailed between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations, about 150 km from the state capital, on the Gonda-Gorakhpur section of the Northeast Railway on Thursday afternoon.

Also read | Gonda train accident: SDRF, NDRF teams deployed for relief work

District Magistrate of Gonda, Neha Sharma, said, "So far, four passengers have died and 31 are injured. Of the injured, the condition of around half a dozen is critical. The deceased include Rahul, 38, Saroj Kumar Singh, 31, and two unknown passengers. The body of one of the unknown passengers was retrieved on Friday morning."

"The bodies of the four have arrived at the district headquarters. Their post-mortem examination will be conducted after their relatives arrive," Ms. Sharma said, adding orders have been given to conduct a magisterial inquiry into the incident.

The district magistrate said she was present at Mankapur Junction when a special train with 600 passengers of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express left for Assam on Thursday night, hours after the accident, according to an official statement.

The officer said she interacted with several passengers and none of them complained about any of their co-passengers missing. She also said that work to restore the railway track is going on, and that it will be completed soon. She reached the district hospital on Friday morning and met the injured admitted there. She directed the chief medical superintendent of the hospital to provide proper treatment and care to the injured. Ms. Sharma also asked the chief medical officer and the district to take special care of the lone passengers injured in the train.