Train runs over three at closed level crossing

Three persons were killed after being run over by a train at a closed level crossing in south-east Delhi’s Sarita Vihar on Wednesday.

The deceased, that included a woman, were among dozens of persons trying to cross the railway tracks upon the passage of a goods train when they failed to notice another train approaching from the opposite direction on the immediate next line.

Eyewitnesses said there was also a man who sustained injuries after being hit by the train. He escaped death as he was thrown off the tracks. Police, however, denied knowledge of any injured person.

The accident took place at a level crossing near Tughlaqabad (East) Cabin in Sarita Vihar at 8.40 am on Wednesday. With several factories located near the railway tracks, most people employed there use the permanently-closed crossing instead of an underpass, not very far away.

Two of the three deceased persons have been identified as Sarojini Devi and Shiv Kumar, both in their mid-30s. They worked at the local factories. None of the deceased were related to each other and efforts are on to identify the third person, said police.

Jitender Tiwari, a security guard who was near the accident spot, says the victims were heading a crowd that had waited for several minutes for a painfully slow-moving goods train to pass.

As soon as the goods train passed, the crowd surged ahead, but only to be immediately interrupted by a passenger train. “The victims’ could not see the other train approach because of the goods train right in front of them,” said Tiwari.

Three persons were subsequently dragged by the train for several metres before only the mangled parts of their bodies remained on the tracks.

“One of the two killed men was riding a bicycle and was dragged along with the vehicle. All the three were killed on the spot,” said Dhiraj Lal, a local shopkeeper.