Behrampore: Ar least four persons including three schoolchildren were killed after a passenger train hit a school van in the Murshidabad district of West Bengal on Friday morning.
The accident occurred between the Karnasubarna station and the Gobindapur railway crossing in the Katwa-Azimganj section of the Howrah division of Eastern Railway.
Eyewitnesses said that that the accident occurred around 7 am. The railway crossing was open and as the school van was crossing the tracks, it was rammed by the Nimtita-Katwa passenger train, as reported by NDTV.
Visuals from the spot showed mangled remains of the van on the tracks.
Several injured students have been admitted to Murshidabad Medical College Hospital.
According to locals, the crossing gate remained shut until an Up-line train passed. It was later opened. However, it was not closed again as another train approached on the adjacent track.
If this is true then the role of the railway gateman will come under scrutiny. There has not been any official statement from the railways as yet.
“The pool car, carrying the students to school, was crossing the rail lines at the level crossing gate near Karnasubarna station, about 48 km from Katwa, when the local train hit the vehicle,” an official said.
Senior police and railway officials have reached the accident site and a formal investigation has been launched into the mishap, including allegations of negligence on the part of the railway gateman.
