5 NDRF teams deployed, over 50 rescued from mangled bogies

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) deployed nearly 200 personnel in Kanpur for search and rescue operations at the site of train accident where at least 100 people died. The operation was still in progress after six hours.

The five NDRF teams were deployed after Home Minister Rajnath Singh instructed NDRF chief R K Pachnanda. Some additional teams are also put on stand by and shall be mobilised as per demand. To supervise the rescue operation, the DG of NDRF rushed to the site early in the morning from Delhi.

Of the five teams, one comprising 35 personnel immediately rushed to the incident site at 05:30 hours from its Regional Response Centre (RRC) Lucknow and reached there at 08:10 hours after which it started search and rescue operation.

Two more teams comprising of 79 personnel from Varanasi too reached Kanpur within hours.

To strengthen the rescue operation, additional two teams comprising 75 personnel were airlifted from Hindon Airbase in Ghaziabad at 10:01 hours and reached at the site at 11:05 hours, a Home Ministry statement said.

NDRF teams comprise of trained responders, equipped with state-of-the-art Disaster Management gadgets and Medical Components.

As the victims are trapped inside the bogies, due care and diligence was being taken.  NDRF personnel are making all possible efforts to rescue the trapped victims, officials said.

So far, NDRF has rescued 53 passengers including 16 badly trapped from the bogies, they said.

An NDRF Control Room is monitoring the situation round the clock and is in touch with Railway authorities and local civil administration to render any kind of assistance.

The Home Minister has expressed deep pain over the loss of lives caused by derailment.

Rajnath Singh said there will be an enquiry into the incident to find out the detail cause of the accident.

"There will definitely be an enquiry to find out how it happened," he told reporters at the sidelines of an event here.

The incident took place at about 03:10 hours approximately 60 km away from Kanpur at a location known as Pukhrayan where over 100 people were killed and nearly 150 injured.

General Manager of North-Central Railway Arun Saxena said S1 and S2 coaches of the train bore the major brunt of the damage as the bogies smashed into each other.

The whereabouts of the ticket collectors and staff in the two coaches is also not known, he said, noting that a third AC coach BE also suffered damage.

Two other coaches, S3 and S4 also went off track, but did not suffer serious damage, Saxena said.

A passenger, who was not hurt, said that the people travelling were jolted out of their sleep by a great thud.

"It was pitch dark and the noise was ear-shattering," he said, adding it was a 'near-death' experience.

More than 100 people have been killed and over 200 injured in the mishap.