Mumbra train accident: Scratch on coach being probed by 5-member panel

Mumbai: A day after four people died and at least nine were injured when two overcrowded suburban trains passed each other near Mumbra, a scratch mark on one of the train's coaches is among the focus areas of a five-member committee formed by Central Railway (CR) on Tuesday to investigate the incident.
Officials said the committee has begun studying various possible reasons that could have led to people falling off the two trains. Of the 13 victims, two—Vicky Mukhyadal, 34, and Manish Shah, 44—were travelling on the CSMT-Karjat fast local towards Kalyan, while the remaining 11 were headed towards Thane on the Kasara-CSMT fast local.
As public and political criticism mounted following the mishap, CR on Tuesday appointed a five-member committee, comprising officers from its Mumbai division, to investigate the incident. CR's chief safety officer will monitor the overall investigation process.
'This committee will thoroughly investigate the incident and identify the root causes. They will also provide suggestions and measures to avoid similar incidents in the future,' said a senior CR official, who requested anonymity.
Main theory
The primary theory being explored is that commuters were standing on the footboards of both crowded trains, and their backpacks brushed against each other as the trains passed each other in opposite directions, officials said.
There is a dark black scratch extending a few feet on the exterior of one of the coaches of the Kasara-CSMT fast local, said a CR official. 'It looks like a bag held by someone travelling on the CSMT-Karjat train left a scratch on the coach. One of the injured victims has stated that it seemed as if someone from the opposite train bumped into the coach of the CSMT-bound train and fell down. There are some fragments of an object stuck on the coach as well, which is being investigated,' the official said.
The official added that the scratch could also have been caused by a solid metal object brushing against the coach. 'The possibility of this object and/or bag hitting the passengers standing by the footboard is being looked into. It is possible that the bags of passengers on one train brushed against those standing precariously on the edge of the footboard on the other train. However, this is conjecture, and there are multiple factors to consider,' the official said.
The multiple factors being considered include the involvement of the notorious fatka gang that targets train passengers, a scuffle in one of the coaches, and a sudden jerk caused due to braking that may have led to passengers standing on the footboard losing their balance and falling off, the official added.
On Tuesday, CR officials were seen measuring the distance between the two adjacent tracks at the spot where the accident occurred. CR will also investigate whether the curvature of the tracks at Mumbra led to the incident. However, officials said that it's only a 2.5-degree curve and the commuters who fell were 50 metres away from it.
'The possibility of this curvature being blamed for this incident seems to be unfounded. There are 153 curvatures across the Mumbai division that are over four degrees. In the ghat sections (Kalyan-Karjat/Kasara), there are rail tracks that have curves of seven degrees,' said another railway official.
One more injured person
Meanwhile, authorities at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital in Kalwa and the Government Railway Police, Thane, said that one more injured person—Jitendra Mhatre, 32—was added to the list on Monday evening, bringing the total number of injured to 10. Mhatre suffered a back injury after falling off the CSMT-bound local. However, CR is yet to update its official figures.
Machindra Gotrane, 39, who suffered a head and leg injury, was moved to the JJ Hospital in Mumbai on Tuesday after his condition worsened due to neurological complications. His distraught wife, Kunda Gotrane, collapsed twice at the hospital. 'Everything feels like a blur. I just want to see him standing again,' she said, wiping away tears.
Two of the most critically injured—Shiva Gawli and Anil More—were moved to Jupiter Hospital in Thane for intensive care. Gawli's condition has slightly improved, while More remains critical, according to tehsildar Umesh Patil. Both are under close observation by a team of doctors.
According to the Kalwa hospital officials, three male injured patients underwent orthopaedic surgeries on Tuesday, following medical assessments indicating bone fractures and internal injuries. The condition of the remaining four patients is reported to be stable, but several require continued medical support and monitoring. CR officials said the victims should approach the Railway Claims Tribunal for compensation.

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