4 killed, 9 injured after passengers fall off moving overcrowded train in India’s Maharashtra

New Delhi (Xinhua/RSS): At least four passengers were killed and nine others were injured Monday after they fell off an overcrowded moving local train in India’s western state of Maharashtra, officials said.

The accident took place near Mumbra railway station in Thane district, about 44 km northwest of Mumbai, the capital city of Maharashtra. According to railway officials, the passengers hanging off one of the local train’s footboards collided with those similarly clinging to another train coming from the opposite direction.

‘Due to two trains passing close to each other, passengers hanging outside fell off,’ Kailas Pawar, a senior health official, said. ‘Thirteen people were injured, and of them, four succumbed. The seriously injured were shifted for advanced treatment. Seven patients are currently admitted at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital, where their investigations and treatment are ongoing.’

Swapnil Dhanraj Nila, chief public relations officer of Central Railway, told the media it was not a collision. However, in this incident, the passengers travelling on footboards in trains in opposite directions got entangled.

‘Some passengers travelling towards Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) fell from the train at Thane’s Mumbra railway station. The accident is believed to be excessive crowd on the train. The railway administration and police have reached the spot. The injured are being taken immediately to the nearest hospital. Investigation into the accident has begun,’ the Central Railway said in a statement to local media.

Authorities have ordered a probe into the incident. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has condoled the loss of lives in the incident.