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| India-Pakistan |
| 80 killed as Maoists derail train in India |
| 2010-05-29 |
| as Maoist rebels allegedly derailed a Mumbai-bound train. Casualties multiplied as the derailed train also hit a goods train coming from the opposite direction. Police said they found scattered posters of the Maoist-backed People's Committee against Police Atrocities claiming responsibility of derailment of the Super Deluxe Express. The incident occurred in West Midnapore district, about 150 kilometres from the provincial capital of Kolkata. PCPA spokesman Asit Mahato, however, denied involvement in the incident. "We are in the dark and it's the job of police to find out who had done it," he told reporters over telephone. The posters had demanded immediate withdrawal of the security forces from the region. According to reports, some passengers were believed to be still trapped inside the mangled coaches. "The toll could go up," West Bengal Home Secretary Samar Ghosh said. Five of the 13 derailed coaches fell on an adjacent track and were hit by a goods train coming from the opposite direction. Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee, who visited the spot, said a "bomb blast" triggered by Maoists on the rail track caused the derailment and that TNT explosives and gelatine sticks had been found from the site. However, officials said they were also looking at evidence that metal plates used to secure adjoining sections of the track had been removed. Home Minister P Chidambaram said the derailment appeared to be sabotage, but it was not yet clear whether explosives were used. Indian President Pratibha Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressed grief over lives lost in the incident. The PM announced Rs 200,000 for families of the victims and Rs 50,000 for the injured. One survivor, Vinayak Sadna, said he had been sleeping when his carriage lurched violently to one side and then flipped over, flinging passengers around the compartment. "I ended up stuck between two seats with an iron bar crushing my hand," Sadna said. "I was trapped for three hours before I was pulled out. My wife is still missing." Services of Indian Air Force helicopters were sought at the accident spot to airlift some of the injured to hospitals. The railway minister said a patrol engine had passed through the area half an hour earlier, but the timing of the blast proved disastrous with a portion of the line blown away. West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya said the attack warranted a review of the government's counterinsurgency strategy. Home Secretary GK Pillai said the next course of action against the rebels would be decided after an upcoming meeting. He, however, refused to comment on whether the government has proposed using the army or the air force against the rebels. |
| Posted by:Fred |