Miraculous escape and mutilation of 12 passengers in Maharashtra train accident
Ramrang Pasi could barely bring himself to look at the body of his uncle, Lachchiram Pasi, due to the extent of the mutilation. Lachchiram’s family wishes to transport his remains back to his native Nepal. Still, parts of his severed hands and legs remain untraced 24 hours after the tragic train accident in Jalgaon, Maharashtra.
Shaukat Ali, another migrant worker from Nepal who was with Lachchiram, described a narrow escape as he and another passenger squeezed into a small space between the Lucknow-Mumbai Pushpak Express and the Bengaluru-Delhi Karnataka Express, clinging tightly to each other.
The horrific incident unfolded on Wednesday evening when 12 passengers, reportedly panicking due to a fire alarm, jumped off the Pushpak Express and were fatally struck by the oncoming Karnataka Express.
Railway officials clarified on Thursday that the passengers who alighted had sufficient time to reach a safe area since the Karnataka Express arrived 20 minutes later.
Among the 12 victims, at least seven were Nepalese, including a minor boy and two women, authorities reported on Thursday. The deceased Nepalese nationals were identified as Kamala Navin Bhandari, 43, of Colaba in Mumbai; Javakala Bhate, 60, from Bhiwandi in Thane; Lachchiram, in his 50s; and 11-year-old Imtiyaz Ali.
Ramrang, who resides in Jalgaon, said Lachchiram was from Narainapur in Nepal’s Banke district. “Parts of his hands and legs are still missing,” he shared. Lachchiram had been traveling on the Pushpak Express from Nepal via Lucknow to Thane with five other day laborers, all of whom survived.
According to Ramrang, they identified Lachchiram by his face and clothing, but the sight of his dismembered remains was so horrifying it left them momentarily paralyzed with shock. The family has yet to receive Lachchiram’s body, as they hope to return it to Nepal for his final rites.
Shaukat recalled the terrifying sequence, “We heard a fire alarm and noticed smoke inside the bogie. When the train slowed, we quickly got off, along with most others.”
“Moments later, the Karnataka Express hurtled toward us on the adjacent tracks. People scattered in panic, but there was little room to escape,” he continued. “We found a tiny gap between the trains, lay flat and held on to each other. Surviving was nothing short of a miracle,” he said.
Officials said earlier that 10 of the injured remain hospitalized—nine at Pachora Civil Hospital and one in Jalgaon City—while others with minor injuries have been discharged.
Central Railway officials visited hospitals on Wednesday night and distributed Rs 2.70 lakh ex gratia to nine injured passengers.
The tragedy occurred between Maheji and Pardhade stations near Pachora town when the Pushpak Express halted at 4:45 PM after someone triggered the emergency chain, fearing a fire in one of the bogies. However, Dilip Kumar, executive director of information and publicity for the Railway Board, denied reports of any fire or sparks within the coach.
“Of the 12 victims, eight bodies have been identified so far, including two through Aadhaar cards,” said special inspector-general of police Dattatraya Karale.
Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar stated on Thursday that the tragedy resulted from a false rumor spread by a tea seller about a fire in the Pushpak Express.
Speaking in Pune, Pawar explained, “A tea seller from the pantry shouted about a fire in a coach.” This alarm was relayed by two passengers from Uttar Pradesh’s Shravasti district, creating panic in their general coach and the one next to it.
After a passenger pulled the chain, people started jumping off the halted train, only to be struck by the Karnataka Express on the neighboring tracks.
The Pushpak Express eventually reached Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus at 1:20 AM on Thursday, a railway spokesperson confirmed.
