2 dead, 17 injured in stampede at Bengal rly station

Two people were killed and 17 others injured in a stampede-like situation at Santragachi Railway Station in West Bengal's Howrah district on Tuesday.

The incident took place at around 6.30 pm, when an express train and two local trains entered the station in quick succession, following which, there was a heavy rush of passengers on the foot overbridge.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reached the spot within a couple of hours of the incident.

"So far, two people have died in the Santragachi Station incident," said the chief minister. She also accused the Railway authorities of "negligence and callousness".

According to senior Railway officials, the Nagercoil-Shalimar Express and two other local trains entered the station in quick succession and the Santragachi-Chennai Express and Shalimar Visakhapatnam Express were scheduled to arrive soon after. Passengers rushed to board the train resulting in the virtual stampede, Railway officials said.

The injured have been admitted to the Howrah General Hospital and some are in critical condition.

Several express and local train services have been disrupted after the incident.