Hazara Express mishap: Railways minister directs for investigation

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Railways and Aviation Khawaja Saad Rafique on Sunday said he had directed for investigation in to the incident of Hazara Express mishap, Bol News reported.

“First relief will be provided then investigation will be held. An emergency has been imposed in hospitals of Nawabshah and Sukker,” Saad Rafique said talking to media. He said the train was running with suitable speed.

He said it could be a sabotage activity or a mechanical fault. He said he was thinking in the morning that just three days were remaining to their coalition government, may there be no bad news.

At least 25 people were killed and several others wounded as Hazara Express train derailed near Sarhari in Nawabshah, Bol News reported.

10 coaches of the train, going from Karachi to Sargodha, were derailed . The rescue sources said work of evacuating passengers from train coaches was underway. The death toll may rise as 10 of the wounded are in critical condition as per the rescue sources.

An eyewitness said they recovered 25 bodies in one of the coaches. The Pakistan Railways spokesperson said more than 1000 people had booked seats in the train.

Emergency has been imposed in the nearby hospitals. The track from Karachi to Lahore and Lahore to Karachi has been blocked due to the rescue operation.

Two trains with relief and rescue teams were dispatched from Sukkur to the site of incident. The injured are being treated at Nawabshah, Tando Adam, Shahdadpur and Hyderabad hospitals.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah expressed sorrow over loss of lives in the train accident and directed the concerned authorities to immediately provide medical facilities to the victims.

In the last two years only, 500 small and big scale mishaps have taken place on railway tracks older than 150 years. The accidents have become normal because of dilapidated condition of 300 km railway tracks, for which nobody is ready to take responsibility.