‘Human error likely’ — initial investigation into Andhra train accident points to ‘signal overshoot’

East Coast Railway CPRO says automatic application of emergency brakes would have been possible if a 'Kavach' system had been in place. Collision left 13 dead, over 50 injured.

Rescue operation underway in Vizianagaram district Sunday | ANI

New Delhi: Human error was the likely cause of the Andhra Pradesh train accident that claimed at least 13 lives and left over 50 people injured, East Coast Railway (ECoR) officials said Monday.

“It seems that the accident was caused due to human error. This looks like a case of overshooting the signal…because the signal was red, so the train was supposed to stop,” ECoR Chief Public Relations Officer Biswajit Sahu told ThePrint over phone, adding that investigation is ongoing and the exact reason will become clear only after it is completed.

At 7 pm Sunday, the Visakhapatnam-Palasa passenger train hit the Visakhapatnam-Rayagada passenger train from behind at Vizianagaram district’s Kantakapalli — about 40 km from Visakhapatnam — causing three coaches to derail. 

Asked about the automatic application of emergency brakes in such situations, CPRO Sahu said this would have been possible if the anti-collision ‘Kavach’ system was in place. However, the system is still in the implementation phase and was not available on the accident route, he added.

Sunday’s incident comes just four months after one of the deadliest train accidents in India involving three trains in Odisha, which left 288 people dead and around 900 injured. After a report from the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) linked the accident to human error, the Indian Railways had suspended seven railway officials over their “involvement and negligence” in the train tragedy. 

In September, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had filed a charge sheet against three arrested Railways officials for alleged culpable homicide not amounting to murder and destruction of evidence. 

Following the Sunday accident, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced that ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh, Rs 2.5 lakh for grievous injuries, and Rs 50,000 for minor injuries was being disbursed.

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All injured shifted to hospitals.
Ex-gratia compensation disbursement started – ₹10 Lakh in case of death,
₹2.5 Lakh towards grievous and ₹50,000 for minor injuries.

— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) October 29, 2023

According to media reports, rescue operations are likely to be completed by Monday evening. Eighteen 18 trains were cancelled and 22 others diverted in the aftermath of the accident.

(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)