India train accident: Rail movement resumes after 51 hours

Train services in India's Odisha resumed on Sunday night, 51 hours after a triple train collision claimed at least 288 people.

The down-line track at Bahanga Bazar station in Balasore district was repaired and a coal-loaded goods train was flagged off by Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, reports NDTV.

Meanwhile, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw have announced a CBI probe into the tragic accident. The railways' preliminary investigation singled out “interference” with the “electronic interlocking system” and “points”, which ensure safe movement of trains, as the “root cause” of the crash, reports Times of India.

The railway ministry ruled out any fault of the loco driver of the Coromandel Express and failure of signals.

Though the decision to bring in CBI points to suspicions of criminality, railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and the Railway Board did not mention sabotage.

“Considering the nature of the accident, the prevailing circumstances and the administrative inputs, the Railway Board has recommended that the case be handed over to the CBI for further investigation,” Vaishnaw told the media in Bhubaneswar.

The three-train crash took place near the city of Balasore in the eastern Indian state of Odisha on Friday night. At least 288 people were killed and around 900 injured in the horrific collision in India.

The crash is considered to be the country's deadliest rail accident in more than 20 years. Local reports suggest that the high-speed passenger train Coromandel Express received a signal to enter the main track line.

The signal was later pulled back, with the train entering an adjacent loop line instead, crashing into the second train, which was carrying goods, reports Deutsche Welle.

The impact caused several carriages on the first passenger train to flip onto another track, where an incoming third train, the passenger line Yesvantpur-Howrah Express, struck it. The two passenger trains were carrying over 2,000 people.

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