Kolkata-Sairang Express Derails Near Guwahati

Guwahati: A major disaster was narrowly averted on Wednesday morning when the locomotive and several coaches of the Kolkata-Sairang Express (Train No. 13125) derailed. The high-stakes accident occurred at approximately 6:54 AM at the Digaru railway station, situated on the busy outskirts of Guwahati in Assam’s Kamrup (Metropolitan) district.

The derailment quickly triggered a massive emergency response from regional authorities and sent shockwaves through local communities, given the scale of the physical wreckage left behind on the tracks.

The long-distance passenger train, which connects Sairang near Mizoram's capital city of Aizawl to Kolkata in West Bengal, was navigating its routine route when the incident occurred.

According to preliminary official statements issued by the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), the train was actively being routed onto a secondary loop line at Digaru station. This standard operational procedure was initiated to give precedence to an incoming express train traveling on the main line.

However, the maneuver turned critical when the loco pilot apparently failed to control the speed of the train while decelerating into the loop line, causing the heavy locomotive and five to six trailing coaches to violently jump the tracks.

"Six coaches of the Kolkata-Sairang Express have derailed at Digaru railway station at around 6:54 AM today. So far, no casualties have been reported," stated Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, the Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Northeast Frontier Railway, during an official press briefing. While early, unverified reports from local television networks initially hinted at widespread passenger panic and potential injuries, top railway authorities moved swiftly to clear the air.

Official medical teams confirmed that all passengers on board remained miraculously safe, escaping the mangled coaches with only a handful of minor, non-life-threatening scrapes that were treated seamlessly on-site.

The sudden crash caused immediate alarm among local residents living adjacent to the railway boundaries, many of whom were just starting their morning routines. "I heard a deafening screech followed by a loud thud, and immediately rushed to the spot," a local witness remarked to reporters at the scene. "When I arrived, I saw the derailed coaches leaning heavily to the side. There were several houses situated just meters away from the tracks, but fortunately, the derailed cars did not roll over completely, and no one on the ground was harmed."

Following the accident, a high-level delegation of senior railway officials, including the NFR General Manager and divisional technical heads, rushed to Digaru station to personally supervise the complex recovery and track restoration operations.

To minimize disruption for those on board, the NFR quickly mobilized resources and arranged an alternative relief train to transport all the stranded passengers safely onward to their final destinations.

Meanwhile, heavy machinery and accident relief trains have been deployed to the site to clear the derailed coaches, repair damaged track infrastructure, and conduct a thorough investigation into the exact mechanical or human errors that led to the speed misjudgment.

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