Date:12/01/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/01/12/stories/2009011255481200.htm

National

Derailment hits traffic on Delhi-Chennai route

Trains from Chennai side are being diverted via Itarsi, those from Delhi re-routed via Bina

— Photo: A.M. Faruqui

Wagons of a goods train that derailed near Bhopal on Sunday.

Bhopal: Eight wagons of a goods train derailed at the Habibganj railway station crossing near Bhopal on Sunday disrupting rail traffic on the busy Delhi-Chennai route of the Western Central Railway.

The incident occurred around 12.20 p.m., Divisional Railway Manager P.K. Agrawal told PTI. The train carrying steel rolls was coming from Bhilai (Chhattisgarh) and bound for Govindgarh (Haryana), he said. It would take over 15 hours to restore traffic. Trains from Chennai were being diverted via Itarsi while those from Delhi were re-routed via Bina, he said.

The trains which had already arrived at Bhopal station were diverted via Ratlam. Prima facie the cause of the accident, which has badly damaged the tracks as well as the overhead power cables, appeared to be the breaking of an axle of one of the wagons, Mr. Agrawal said.

An inquiry will be conducted by a high-level railways team, which would submit its report within 15 days, he added. — PTI