Bhubaneswar, Aug. 20: The passengers from Odisha, who were in the Puri-Haridwar Kalinga-Utkal Express that derailed near Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh yesterday, were lucky.
Of the 99 passengers, who had boarded the train from various stations of Odisha, only five were found to have suffered injuries in the accident. Fortunately, no passenger from the state was among the 24 deceased.
"There were only two Odias in my bogie. The train suddenly appeared to have picked up speed and then it jumped the rails. We were taken out of the compartment through the emergency window. I was lucky to have escaped with a few bruises," said Banita Padhi, who had boarded the train from Puri.
The East Coast Railway public relations officer Nirakar Das said: "We have so far received the list of 17 deceased who have been identified. None from Odisha are among them."
Das said that according to the railway reservation records, 99 passengers had boarded in the reserved compartments of the train from various stations in the state, the highest being from Puri (86), followed by Bhubaneswar and Jharsuguda (seven each) and Khurda Road (five).
The state's deputy relief commissioner Prabhat Mohapatra, who led an official team to Muzaffarnagar, told The Telegraph over phone: "Out of the five injured, Sabita Mallick, 50, from Balasore town was admitted at Muzaffarnagar Medical College and Hospital and the remaining four from Arukhadiha village from Banpur in Khurda district were treated in Muzaffarnagar District Headquarters Hospital. Madhu Mandal, 50, who had fractured his leg, was under treatment, while three others - Jatin Das, Amiya Das and Debendra Das - have been discharged from the hospital."
"All the five have been given Rs 5,000 each by the state government for immediate sustenance. We are trying to bring them to Odisha via Delhi," said Mohapatra.
Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik, who returned to Bhubaneswar from New Delhi today, tweeted: "My officials met all 5 injured #Utkal Express passengers from #Odisha & extended support; they are stable & I pray for their early recovery."
A medical team from Bhubaneswar has also been sent to Muzaffarnagar to take care of the injured, said the state's health secretary P.K. Meherda. The team included surgery specialist Niranjan Mishra, medicine specialist Rajib Jena and orthopedic specialist Kanhei Mohapatra.
BJD and BJP delegations have also gone to Muzaffarnagar to stand beside the accident victims. BJD MP Pratap Keshari Deb, who was a part of the BJD delegation headed by state's commerce and transport minister Nrusingha Charan Sahu, said: "Three injured have been discharged and we also visited the two who are undergoing treatment."