NEW DELHI: A passenger train derailed in Uttar Pradesh, northern India, prompting immediate medical response, a local medical officer said. Footage from the scene showed several overturned carriages.
The incident involving the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express occurred in Gonda district on Thursday, close to the sacred city of Ayodhya, around 2:30 pm local time (0900 GMT), as reported by Indian media.
Anil Kumar Tiwari, the chief medical superintendent of Gonda District Hospital, informed AFP that medical teams were swiftly dispatched to the site of the accident.
India’s railway system, despite being the primary mode of transportation across the vast country, suffers from inadequate funding and frequently experiences deadly accidents.
Last year, nearly 300 people lost their lives in a tragic incident where a passenger train collided with a stationary goods train, causing derailed compartments to strike another fast-moving passenger service.
India’s deadliest railway disaster dates back to 1981, when a cyclone derailed a train in Bihar state, causing it to plunge into a river and resulting in 800 fatalities and over 100 injuries.
