Daharki trains collision: Railways fails to gather data hours after the accident

KARACHI: Over 20 hours passed after deadly Dharki train accident that gulped the lives of over 48 passengers, Pakistan Railways appear inefficacious in gathering passengers’ data so far, making the situation worse for the bereaved families.

In the chaotic aftermath, the desperate family members and relatives thronged to railway stations and information centers to know about the safety of their loves ones, but to no avail.

Official sources said as many as 700 passengers were traveling by Millat Express from Karachi to Sargodha when it derailed and collided with Sir Syed Express coming from Rawalpindi near Daharki in Sindh, leaving at least 50 passengers dead and over 100 injured.

The officials of Karachi Division said they have not received data of the victims - deceased and injured from the Divisional Medical Officer Sukkur yet.

They said PR Karachi Division set up two information centers one at Karachi Cantt Station and the other in Hyderabad.

The worried relatives of the ill-fated trains’ passengers paid visits of these centers, and made hundreds of phone calls on the given numbers to know about the safety of their loved ones, but the railway authorities failed to help them in this regard.

The officials said rescue operations continued all the day long but the track was still not cleared. The victims have been moved to different health facilities in Sukkur, Hyderabad, and Rahimyar Khan.

They said Railways will pay Rs 1.5 million as compensation to the families of those killed in the train accident once their identifications are ascertained.

The injured passengers will be given Rs 50,000 to Rs 300,000 depending on the minor and severe injuries.

The administration has started collecting data of the victims on an emergency basis and the process of providing relief money will also begin soon.

Officials of the Divisional Superintendent’s Office Karachi said the derailment has also affected train operations from Karachi.

They said Lahore destined Jinnah Express was merged into Karakoram express, and Lahore destined Karachi Express was merged into Shah Hussain Express and departed from Cantt station on Monday afternoon.

Rawalpindi destined Sir Syed Express, and Islamabad destined Green Line have been cancelled and passengers are allowed 100 percent refund.

Also, the Bahauddin Zakaria Express, which runs between Karachi and Multan has been suspended due to technical reasons for today (Tuesday). A 100 percent refund will be given to confirmed ticket holders. Passengers who have booked ticket from the reservation office should go to the reservation office and get refund.

Those who booked tickets online can cancel it by visiting the PR booking app and get a refund from there.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021