Prayagraj: In a close call, an attempted derailment of the Vande Bharat Express was averted in Prayagraj on Friday evening when a bike was deliberately abandoned on the railway tracks, causing a major safety threat. The incident took place around 4:20 p.m. on November 8, as the Vande Bharat train, en route from Varanasi to Prayagraj Junction, approached the Bandhwa Tahirpur railway underpass near Jhansi.
According to initial reports, some youths were crossing the railway tracks on bikes over the underpass. As the train approached, one of them abandoned his bike on the tracks and fled the scene. The bike collided with the engine of the Vande Bharat Express and was dragged along the track, causing a strong impact that passengers felt as a sudden jolt. The loud, continuous dragging sound alarmed the passengers onboard.
Quick action by the loco pilot, who applied the emergency brakes, prevented further damage and potential derailment. The Northeast Railway control room in Varanasi was immediately alerted, and railway authorities issued a safety alert, halting movement on the affected track to prevent any additional incidents.
Railway officials are investigating the motive behind the act and are reviewing security footage to identify those responsible.
Of late several attempts are being made by the miscreants who are mostly Islamists to wreck havoc as they are placing either the gas cylinders or vehicles on the railway track which would result in train accident and in loss of human life and at the same time cause damage to the infrastructure.
