Srinagar, Nov 23: Twenty four persons were injured today, one of them seriously, when three coaches of a passenger train derailed in Kulgam district in the first such incident since the launch of train services in Kashmir Valley in 2008.
The engine and three bogies of the Quazigund-Budgam passenger train derailed at Sedura village, 55 kms from here, as the driver overshot the intended station stop by nearly 200 metres, Northern Railway officials said.
One person received grievous injuries in the mishap which caused minor injuries to 23 others, they said.
An ex-gratia of Rs 15,000 has been announced by the Railways for the passenger who sustained grievous injuries in the derailment and Rs 5000 for those who received minor injuries.
Railway officials from Srinagar have reached site to monitor the rescue and restoration work.
The accident occured around 12.30 pm in the afternoon.
The cause of the accident is yet to be ascertained, he said.
“All the injured persons were evacuated to a hospital,” a senior police official in Kulgam told PTI. Though the exact cause of the accident is yet to be ascertained preliminary investigations have found that there was some problem with the brakes of the train.
A team of Railway officials was rushed to the spot to investigate the cause of the mishap. The first train service was introduced in the Valley in October, 2008.
Today's mishap is the third involving railways since yesterday. Seven persons were killed when two coaches of the Doon Express caught fire in Jharkhand yesterday.
Four passengers were injured today when the Howrah-bound Koraput-Howrah Express collided with a goods train at Jharsuguda Station in Odisha.
