The terrible railway accident due to the collision of two trains in Sainthia railway station led to the tragic death of at least 60 persons.

The number of rail accidents has been unprecedented in the last one year. Maintenance of equipment and safety measures are being neglected in the railways. One lakh jobs in safety related jobs remain vacant. The government cannot keep quiet about the present state of affairs in the railways.

It is the sixth major accident in the past one year and the second in less than two months in the West Bengal state.


  • May 28: 148 people died as Maoists cut open the pandrol clips (used to fix the rail to the sleeper) near Jhargram in West Midnapore district. A speeding freight train then rammed into the derailed coaches.
  • Jan 16: Three people were killed and many wounded as the Kalindi Express and Shram Shakti Express collided in Uttar Pradesh as thick fog had engulfed the area.
  • Jan 2: The dense fog caused three accidents involving five trains in Uttar Pradesh, killing 15 people.
  • Nov 14, 2009: Seven passengers were killed and over 60 wounded as the Delhi-bound Mandore Express derailed in Bassi town near Jaipur.
  • Oct 21, 2009: The Goa Express rammed into the Mewar Express at Banjana on the Mathura-Vrindavan section of the Northern Railway in Uttar Pradesh, leaving 22 people dead and 26 injured.

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HELP LINE NUMBERS

Eastern Railway has opened control rooms following the accident. The stations and their phone numbers are:

Sealdah (033-23503535, 033-23503537),

Malda (06436-222061),

Bhagalpur (06412-4222433),

Jamalpur (063444-3101)