Balasore: Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the site of the horrific triple train accident in Odisha’s Balasore district on Saturday to take stock of the situation.
Modi landed at Bahanaga by an Indian Air Force (IAF) chopper and proceeded to the site where the deadly mishap had taken place on Friday evening that claimed at least 261 lives and left over 900 injured.
The Prime Minister had reached Kalaikunda Air Force Station in West Bengal in a special plane from New Delhi and they flew to Bahanaga in the IAF chopper.
The Prime Minister was briefed about the accident by Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who was present at the site. Union Education and Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan was also present.
During his visit to the site, the Prime Minister sought information from the Minister and senior railways officials about the mishap and rescue operation carried out thereafter. He was also stated to have sought information about the restoration work launched at the mishap site.
Modi went around the area and examined the mangled coaches of the affected trains. He was explained about the damage caused by the mishap, sources said. The Minister was also stated to have given instruction to the officials on the need to undertake speedy restoration work. He interacted with the officials and team members of NDRF and ODRAF at the site.
Before leaving for Bahanaga, the Prime Minister had chaired a high level meeting in New Delhi to take stock of the situation in the wake of the train mishap in Odisha. Home Minister Amit Shah, NDRF Director General and senior railways officials were among those present at the meeting.
“PM Narendra Modi chaired a meeting to take stock of the situation in the wake of the train mishap in Odisha. Aspects relating to rescue, relief and medical attention to those affected were discussed in the review meeting,” his office tweeted.
It may be noted here that the deadly mishap took place on Friday evening when Coromandel Express, heading to Chennai, reportedly derailed and hit a goods train, after which many coaches of the passenger train flipped over and fell on the opposite track. The Yesvantpur-Howrah Superfast coming from the opposite side then collided with the derailed coaches. Both trains were moving at a high speed at the time of the collision.
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