At least 8 dead, dozens injured after freight train collides with passenger train in India

New Delhi — At least eight people were killed and more than 50 injured after a freight train collided with a passenger train in India on Monday. The accident occurred in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal, when the goods train hit the Kanchenjunga Express in New Jalpaiguri area, derailing at least three cars of the passenger train.

The collision occurred when the Kanchenjunga Express was traveling from Silchar in Assam to Sealdah in Kolkata.

Stark images broadcast on Indian TV news channels showed hundreds of rescuers trying to save passengers trapped in the trapped train carriages, one of which was thrown into the air at a steep angle.

India's national NDTV network said the relatively low death toll, considering the severity of the accident, may have been due to the fact that the freight train rammed into the rear compartment of the passenger train, which was not believed to be carrying passengers.

“Five people died on the spot, including the loco (motive) pilot of the Kanchenjunga Express. Twenty-five people were injured,” Abhishek Roy, Additional Superintendent of Police, Darjeeling Police District, told reporters at the scene. Efforts are on to rescue the people trapped in the train.

Officials later raised the confirmed death toll to eight.

All train services on the Kolkata-Siliguri line have been suspended due to the accident, officials said.

Indian Railway Board chairperson Jaya Verma Sinha told reporters, “The rescue operation has been completed,” adding that the injured were being given “best possible treatment”.

Sinha said the accident appeared to be due to human error, as “it seems the driver of the goods train ignored the signal.”

A detailed investigation was expected to ascertain the cause of the fatal accident.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the accident “tragic” and announced an unofficial government relief of 200,000 Indian rupees (about $2,400) for the families of those killed and 50,000 rupees (about $600) for the injured.

Indian Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnab announced a separate state compensation of 1 million rupees (about $12,000) for each family killed in the accident and 250,000 rupees (about $3,000) for the injured.

India has one of the largest rail networks on the planet, but accidents are common. In June 2023, One of the deadliest train accidents in IndiaThree trains were involved in the eastern state of Odisha, killing nearly 300 people and injuring more than 1,000.