Thiruvananthapuram: Two full days after the derailment of a passenger train near Karukutty on the outskirts of Kochi in Kerala, trains continued to move at a slow pace and railway services were widely disrupted in the state.
The derailment happened a little after 2am on Sunday, but since then rail services in the state have been disrupted with several services cancelled, many trains terminated early and those that are in service running at slow speeds.
Local media reported that the engineering section staff were unhappy that the blame was being laid on them. Engineering staff have now pointed out that there are numerous points on the railway lines where minor repairs are required.
The engineering staff are reportedly upset about action being taken against a senior section engineer in connection with the derailment incident on Sunday. The engineers, in turn, feel that reports had been given about the flaws in the tracks, and that therefore action should be taken against senior officials instead of making engineering staff the scapegoats.
Disgruntled engineering staff have pointed out that there are minor flaws in the tracks in as many as 202 points in the route from Thiruvananthapuram to Shoranur. Considering this, they have recommended that trains slow down at all these points.
The decision is likely to lead to a massive congestion in the railway operations in the state and throw train services out of gear in Kerala.
The derailment at Karukutty was also owed to a flaw in the track. There were no casualties in the incident. The railways have ordered a probe into the mishap.
Within a week’s time, the rush of passengers for the traditional Onam festival will begin, putting further pressure on the railways to get its services back to normality.
