Title - Passengers stranded for hours as train derails

Thousands  passengers including sick patients and children of several trains like Dn Cachar Express, Dn Agartala Express, Up Cachar express  were stranded for several hours at Lower Haflong and Jatinga stations following an accident of a Lumding bound  empty goods train near Bagetar Railway Station in Lumding –Badarpur Hill section of NFRailway on Saturday.

The accident occurred at about 10.45 PM of Saturday following which the train communication was totally disrupted for several hours causing immense inconvenience to the traveling passengers of several trains.

Meanwhile, railway officials from Lumding and Badarpur including relief trains rushed to the spot for the restoration of the disrupted rail communication. As many as two cranes from Lumding and Badarpur were engaged for the restoration work.

The suffered passengers at Lower Haflong alleged that it was due to utter negligence of the railway authority towards the traveling passengers of this region. This region has always been neglected by the government for the reasons best known to the authority concerned.

It is to be mentioned here that the age old Meter Gauge Lumding- Badarpur Hill section sometime failed to draw the attention of the authority as the authority seemed to be more attentive towards the Broad Gauge conversion of Lumding- Badarpur Hill section.

R K Goel, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) Lumding talking to this correspondent disclosed that during last two years the number of accidents occurred in this hills section has reduced remarkably. Answering the query of the media persons, DRM held nature responsible for such accident.

However after 14 hours of continuous restoration work the rail communication was restored at about 12 noon of Sunday and all trains left for the destinations.