Mumbra train mishap: Probe slows down as inputs from key CR staff awaited
Thane: The Government Railway Police (GRP) investigation into last week's Mumbra rail accident has apparently hit a standstill, with key technical staff from the Central Railway still unavailable to offer their statements, police officials said.
A GRP team led by Assistant Police Commissioner, Mumbai CSMT, S Shirsat is conducting a parallel probe into the incident that led to the death of four and left ten injured. This is alongside the Central Railway investigations led by its expert team.
The police said they have spoken and recorded statements of railway staff and a few injured passengers admitted to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital (CSMH) at Kalwa last week.
A police unit has also been stationed at Mumbra station since the incident, while another police team led by ACP Shirsat and Thane railway police senior inspector Archana Dusane has meticulously mapped the track distance between platforms 3 and 4 and also the bend ahead of the platforms.
"We've spoken to the injured passengers—some claimed that bogies of two local trains, running in opposite directions, brushed against each other.
We've completed preliminary inquiries and are investigating further. There are several theories, but we will have to wait for inputs from the railway technical staff as their observations will be crucial for us to proceed and draw conclusions," said a senior police official.
Meanwhile, six of the ten injured were discharged after undergoing orthopaedic surgeries from the CSMH, while one still admitted will undergo surgery on Monday, informed Dr Rakesh Barot, the hospital dean.
One patient requiring neurosurgery was transferred to JJ Hospital last week, while two others remain in critical condition at Jupiter Hospital.
The injured passengers told their relatives that the incident happened in a split second, giving them no time to react. "It felt like the bogie of the adjoining train came too close," said the elder brother of Adesh Bhoir from Kasara. Sneha Dhonde from Titwala, who suffered multiple stitches on her head, recalls she was travelling in the first ladies' coach of the CSMT-bound local when the mishap occurred.
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