Odisha Government, Accused Of Manipulating Train Deaths, Says "No Intention To Hide"
NDTV
Asked about the change in the death count, Odisha Chief Secretary PK Jena said it was due to double counting of some bodies.
Odisha Chief Secretary PK Jena said his government has no intention to hide the deaths in the Balasore train crash and the entire rescue operation was being conducted in full public view.
Reacting to allegations that the death count figure was being manipulated, he said Odisha believes in transparency.
"Media persons are very much present at the accident site since the beginning. Everything is being done in the presence of cameras," he said.
"The railways had stated the death count as 288. We also said that, and the figure was based on information from the railways. But, our Balasore District Collector has verified the death count, and the figure was 275 till 10 am of Sunday," he said.