Four gangmen run over by train, killed

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, JULY 19. Four railway gangmen working on the track were mowed down by the Bhagyanagar Express between Moula Ali and Cherlapalli railway stations on Thursday morning. Two other gangmen were injured, one of them critically, in the mishap while two others had a providential escape.

The names of the dead are Bikshapathy, Sukkaiah, Bakkaiah and Mallaiah, all operating from Ghatkesar station, and those injured were Janaiah and Pochaiah. The lucky ones who escaped unscathed were Sayulu and Sattaiah.

The gangmen were replacing the damaged tie-bars on a 60-metre stretch, a kilometre away from Cherlapally station, when the express train hurtled towards them at a speed of 100 kmph. As ill-luck would have it, a goods train was passing by on the other track and the workers could not hear the train fast approaching them.

Railway officials pointed out that the train driver could not have stopped the express as the workers would not have been visible for him as they were bent low and working. The statutory red flag which should have been pitched at the work site was not there. ``We were carrying the red flag, but we did not pitch it,'' Sayulu, one of the survivors, told The Hindu at the Lalaguda Railway Hospital.

Officials were surprised that the gangmen, who were well aware of the timings of trains, could not notice the fast approaching train. It was also customary that a supervisor is posted along with the gangmen just to keep a watch on approaching trains and alert gangmen. However, no such supervisor was present.

All the victims were almost squatting while repairing the track. Sayulu, who was at the farthest end of the track to be repaired, scampered away from the train, saving himself. The injured persons have been shifted to hospital. While Pochaiah was undergoing an operation, Janaiah, who suffered fractures, could not recall the incident as he was `still in a state of shock.'

Officials who reached the accident spot immediately said that even after brakes were applied the train ran on for a few hundred metres before screeching to a halt. Sayulu, it was said, ran upto the Cherlapalli railway station and informed the authorities about the mishap.

The accident site presented a gory picture with mutilated bodies, lumps of flesh and severed body parts strewn around. The four bodies were found over a distance of about 40 metres. It was a heart-rending scene at the site with relatives of the gangmen who rushed from Ghatkesar town, wailing.

The shifting of bodies from the accident site was a tricky problem for the police. They had to fetch gunny bags and policemen had to literally scout for the lumps of flesh and severed limbs of the victims. Even as the search for the mutilated body parts continued there was another train coming, and the authorities could be seen frantically trying to contact the train driver to slow down.

It took a few hours for the officials to remove the bodies. By about 4 p.m., the tracks were cleared for trains.

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