At least 32 killed in southeastern India train derailing

Some 32 people have been killed and over a hundred more injured in a train derailing in India’s southeastern Andhra Pradesh state.

The incident occurred late on Saturday, as the Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar express train came off the track close to the Kuneru railway station in the state’s Vizianagram district.

“Seven coaches and the engine of the 18448 Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar Express derailed near Kuneru station. Besides the engine, the luggage van, two general coaches, two sleeper coaches, one AC three tier coach and an AC two tier coach derailed,” said a spokesman for the country’s East Coast Railways.

All traffic has been suspended on the line until further notice.

The train derailed while en route to Bhubaneswar from Jagdalpur city, around 160 kilometers from Visakhapatnam.

“Four accident relief vans have been sent to the accident site. The reason behind the incident is yet to be ascertained,” noted the spokesman.

The latest incident comes just two months after some 146 people lost their lives and more than 150 others sustained injuries in a train derailment accident in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh.

About 23 million passengers use India’s vast rail network every day, which is the fourth largest in the world. Train accidents are common in the country, where much of the railway equipment is obsolete.

The government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to invest $137 billion over a five year period to modernize the country’s crumbling railway system.