Lives of promise snuffed out

The air was thick with grief as the bodies of all the nine victims of the Bengaluru-Ernakulam Intercity train accident arrived at Victoria Hospital for post-mortem and identification late in the afternoon on Friday.

Some relatives of the victims were seen as five ambulances carrying the bodies entered the mortuary. While some were there to take back the remains of their loved ones, others only hoped their relatives were not among the nine victims. Initially, railways officials had a list of seven people who had died, while the two others had to be identified.

Suresh, whose nine-year-old son Aman son died of head injuries, was in a state of shock. His wife has been admitted to Sparsh Hospital. “Suresh worked as a cook in former chief minister N Dharam Singh’s house for over 15 years and is presently working for tourism minister R V Deshpande,” said a source close to his family.

The family is originally from Kerala and has been living in Sultanpalya, Bengaluru, for many years now. Aman was a student at M S Convent. He was travelling with his mother Sharmila.

The duo were on the way to Thrissur and had their seats reserved in coach D8 (berth numbers 13 and 14).

Family members of another victim, C R Venugopal, 52, who worked with Blue Dart, said he was a resident of New Thippasandra and was travelling to Coimbatore for work. E Antony, 57, who is survived by his mother, was on the way to attend the funeralof a relative. “He worked in the hospitality industry and liked travelling. He was working in the US and retired recently,” said one of his relatives.

Another victim K R George, 70, a resident of Thrissur, was also on a business trip.

Adoor Prakash, Minister for Revenue, Kerala, and Aryadan Muhammed, Minister for Electricity and Transport, arrived at Victoria Hospital in the evening. The Kerala government gave Rs 25,000 to the families of the deceased, besides arranging for taking the victims’ bodies to their hometowns.