Bagmati express train collision could have been another Balasore tragedy. Two lucky breaks prevented it

CHENNAI: The collision involving Mysuru-Darbhanga Bagmati Express (train no 12578) and a stationary goods train could have been another deadly Balasore-like tragedy claiming hundreds of lives but for the presence of a brake van at the rear of the freight train and speed regulation near Kavarapettai station on the Chennai-Gudur section where trains are allowed to run at 130 km per hour.

Like it happened in the case of the Coromandel Express at Balasore in Odisha in June 2023, Bagmati Express rammed into a stabled goods train at high speed by ‘veering’ into the loop line.

Lucky break no.1: Limit on speed due to curve on track

Railway officials familiar with the technical know-how of train operations on the section told DT Next that the Chennai-Gudur section is a 130 kmph capacity route and Bagmati Express was cleared on the mainline to run at the maximum speed.

However, what prevented the accident was the presence of a curve at the far end of Kavarapettai station, the accident site, where only 90 kmph is permitted. The crew of Bagmati Express must have reduced the speed just ahead of Kavarapettai station to comply with the speed regulation, sources said. 

“Unlike in Balasore where the train crew of Coromandel Express increased speed on the open straight line immediately after crossing Bahanagar Bazar station and slammed into the iron ore-laden goods train at 127 kmph, the train crew of Bagmati reduced the speed to comply with the speed regulation ahead of Kavarapettai station. So, the train was already decelerating before it collided with the stabled freight train,” said a senior Railway official familiar with the section.

The speed reduction has also been validated by the official statement, which said the train entered the loop line at 75 kmph.

Lucky break no.2: Brake van at the rear of goods train absorbed impact

According to the official, that the goods train had a brake van at the end played a key role in reducing the magnitude of the accident by crumbling in the impact and thus absorbing the force of the collision. Had it been a normal coach, the force generated by the collision would have ripped through the express train, resulting in an accident that would surely have claimed several lives as it happened in the case of Balasore.

“Thankfully, the goods train had a brake van at the rear. Even if it were even an empty passenger train, the collision would have been disastrous. The absorption of the impact by the brake van of the goods train reduced the magnitude of the disaster. That is also the reason why the train crew of Bagmati Express survived the impact with only injuries,” Railway sources explained.

Unanswered question: Why did the express train go from main to loop line?

Even as sources said signal works are under way at Kavarapettai station, the senior official who spoke to DT Next on condition of anonymity said the biggest mystery was why the train entered the loop line instead of continuing in the main line.

Though the official statement mentions the line switch, it did not explain further: “Instead of going into the main line as per the signal given, the train entered into the loop line at 75 kmph and hit the good train.”

A source on condition of anonymity said, “The train crew has absolutely no control over the track alignment. They just stick to the signal and pilot the train in accordance within the speed restriction, if any.

"There is a striking similarity between Kavarapettai and Balasore. So, if the signal was green for the main line, as is claimed by the official statement issued by Southern Railway, the track alignment in Kavarapettai guided the train into the loop line. It suggests an alarming mismatch between the signal sanctioned and the track alignment, as happened in the case of Balasore accident. Either the track alignment was wrong or the signal claimed to be given was wrong,” the source pointed out.