India: CBI takes over Odisha triple-train crash probe; railways hint at sabotage

Hours after reaching the accident spot, theCentral Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officially took over the probe to investigate the triple-train tragedy in the eastern Indian state of Odisha over the weekend.Since the accident claimed the lives of 278 people whileinjuring over 900, demands were being raised of a CBI query to ascertain if sabotage was at play or not.

On Monday, a 10-member team visited theBalasore train accident site and begancollecting documents and statements. The investigative body is expected to look at all possible reasons behind the horrific crash which is been dubbed as the deadliest train accident of the millennium.

The agency’s investigators and experts from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) will be collaborating together to scrape the site of evidence.

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Sabotage not ruled out by Railways

Preliminary investigations by the railway havecited a glitch in the track interlocking mechanism that contributed to the crash.Jaya Varma Sinha, Member of Operation and Business Development at the Indian Railways Board on Monday, during a press conference, explained how the events led to India’s deadliest train accident.

Sinha said that the functioning of the interlocking system, prima facie, may have been part of the problem.The railway official said that only Coromandel Express, which was travelling at a speed of around 128 kilometres per hour had an accident with the other two trains involved in the collateral. The passenger trains were supposed to be on the main lines and pass each other without any fuss while the freight train remained stationary on the loop line.

However, whether by accident or sabotage, Coromandel Express was put on the loop line where it collided with the goods train that had iron ore. Afterwards, thecoaches of theCoromandel Express got derailed and collided with the last three coaches of the Yesvantpur-Howrah Express, which was passing on the other main line.

The officials claimed that the system is both "error proof and tamper proof". Hence, more questions are being raised as to what could have put Coromandel Express on the loop line.

CAG report asks questions

Questions are also being asked of the government if it had put standard safety mechanisms in place. A 2022 reporttitled 'Derailment in Indian Railways', published by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) had flagged multiple issues that could have led to such an accident.

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The audit was for the period 2017-18 to 2020-21 of the Indian Railways and was conducted during the year 2021-22. The main focus of the report was to ascertain whether measures to prevent derailments were clearly laid down and implemented by the Ministry of Railways (MoR).

The report pointed out serious concerns related to delayed inspections and, crucial failures, inadequate staffing, and more.

(With inputs from agencies)

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