More than 280 people have been killed and over 900 injured in a collision involving two passenger trains and a goods train near Balasore in the state of Odisha, in the evening of 2nd June.
The Communist Ghadar Party of India conveys its heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives, or have suffered grievous injuries.
This is the country’s worst rail tragedy in the last 20 years.
The Coromandel Express, which runs from Kolkata to Chennai, was going at about 130km/h, collided with a stationary freight train at about 7pm on Friday, causing it to derail. Carriages from the freight train then hit two coaches from the Howrah Superfast Express train, which was travelling in the opposite direction on the adjoining track, coming from Bengaluru and going to Kolkota.
The government has set up an enquiry committee to investigate the cause of the rail disaster. The Railway Minister has declared he knows “the root cause” of the accident, but will reveal it only after the enquiry committee submits its report.
Whenever railway accidents have occurred in the past, the authorities immediately lay the blame on the shoulders of the workers of the Indian Railways – loco drivers, track maintainers, station masters, etc. They cover up the root causes for the avoidable losses of life and public property.
The Communist Ghadar Party of India firmly believes that the accident that has claimed so many precious lives was completely avoidable. Rail safety has been neglected by the Indian Railways for decades. The ruling capitalist class has shown that it does not care for the lives of working people who travel by train. Crores of workers and other toilers who travel by trains are at risk and often suffer.
There are over three lakh vacancies in the railways. Tens of thousands of crucial positions necessary for the safe running of trains have been lying vacant for years. The money necessary for safe operations is not spent.
Railway workers unions have been continuously raising their concerns about the complete neglect of safety by the authorities. Their voices have fallen on deaf ears.
The railway authorities and the Central Government therefore are squarely responsible for the loss of lives of hundreds people, and injuries to hundreds more. They must be held accountable for the terrible rail disaster in Odisha that has claimed hundreds of lives.