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18 killed, 15 hurt in fire on Punjab Mail

Eighteen passengers were burned to death and 15 injured when six bogies of the Punjab Mail caught fire this morning between Dushkheda and Sawada in the Bhusaval division in Maharashtra.

According to preliminary information based on some eyewitness accounts, smouldering cigarette butts set off the fire. But as yet there is no evidence available and the railway ministry officials said they have not ruled out sabotage.

An inquiry into the mishap by the Commissioner of Railway Safety, an independent authority under the ministry of civil aviation, has been ordered, a railway ministry press release said.

Railway Board sources said the fire that started in the S-8 coach spread to coaches S3, S4, S5, S6 and S7.

A railway crossing gateman allegedly saw the train was on fire and informed the authorities. Since this was an electrified stretch, the power was cut to bring the train to a stop.

Those injured have been shifted to the Central Railway hospital in Bhusawal in Jalgaon district, and arrangements have been made to take stranded passengers to their destinations. Those dead have proved difficult to identify because they were badly burnt. Some passengers were injured when they jumped off the running train, sources said.

Helplines have been established at several stations. The numbers are 022-2621503 (Chhatrapathi Shivaji Terminus), 022-4110092 (Dadar), 0251-325447 (Kalyan), 02591-22242 (Manmad), 0755-736939 (Bhopal), 0751-34006 (Gwalior), 02582-22222/22369 (Bhusawal), 0253-560132 (Nashik), 0562-364977 (Agra), 0517-440923 (Jhansi), 0565-402546 (Mathura) and 011-3344128 (Delhi).

The names the 15 people injured and admitted to the railway hospital in Bhusaval: