70% of deceased in Shramik Special trains were from UP, Bihar

NEW DELHI: On an average four passengers who took the

Shramik Special trains

died daily between May 9 and 27, according to an internal compilation of death reports by Railway Protection Force (RPF). A maximum of 33 deceased were from UP followed by 23 from Bihar, with a combined share of 70% of the fatalities.

These two states received over 80% of all Shramik Special trains. A total of 80 passengers in Shramik Special trains died during these 19 days

While the collation of death reports details the deceased persons, railways

India Railways

said “the ministry has not released any list like this yet.” The RPF recorded the reasons for only 11 fatalities, majority of which was illness. In one case a passenger was Covid-19 patient and in another case a passenger died when he attempted to detrain and fell down.

According to compiled data, May 26 saw maximum 13 deaths, followed 10 on May 23 and nine each on May 24 and May 25. During five days – from May 20 to 24 – Indian Railways had run over 250 Shramik Special trains everyday and during this period as many as 71 trains were diverted due to “congestion”, Railway Board chairman V K Yadav has claimed.

Maximum complaint from passengers had also surfaced during this five-day band.

The details of deaths of Shramik Special passengers also show that eight deaths were reported on May 27.

Yadav on Friday had told reporters that he won’t give the numbers of deaths in Shramik Special trains without crosschecking with states and finding out the exact cause of the fatalities. While avoiding direct answer to questions, he had said that the details would be shared soon as “loss of any life is a very sensitive issue.”

In response to a question on how many passengers were denied to board the Shramik Specials due to symptomatic conditions, Yadav had said this was responsibility of the sending state to check the health conditions of passengers and the passengers were required to carry a valid medical certificate.

Meanwhile, taking a potshot at the railways handling the Shramik Special trains, Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday, he said railway minister Piyush Goyal should be divested of his responsibility.