Himalaya Harbinger, Uttarakhand Bureau.
Two railway employees were killed after being struck by a train while patrolling tracks near Collector Form Gate No. 15 on the Uttarakhand-Uttar Pradesh border on Tuesday morning. The incident occurred around 5:25 am when train number 05062, traveling from Tanakpur to Mathura, hit the workers approximately 800 meters from the Majhola station in Pilibhit.
The deceased have been identified as Amarjeet Singh Rana (27), son of Shyam Singh Rana from Shripur Bichuwa in Khatima of district Udham Singh Nagar, and Shiva (20), son of Ishwari Lal from Barkhera in Pilibhit. Both were performing routine track inspections when the accident happened, reportedly due to dense fog limiting visibility.
Eyewitnesses informed the Majhola station master and the police. The express train was halted for a considerable time following the incident. Railway officials, including RPF Sub-Inspector Jitendra Kumar and 17 Mill Chowki Incharge Lalit Singh Bisht in Uttarakhand, reached the site and secured the area. “The accident was caused by heavy fog. Necessary steps will be taken to assist the bereaved families,” said Jitendra Kumar.
The victims’ remains, found scattered over a 50 to 100-meter radius, were collected by the police after hours of painstaking efforts. The bodies were sent to the sub-district hospital for postmortem.
Chief Staff Welfare Inspector Malkhan Singh met the grieving families and provided Rs 25,000 for the last rites. Khatima MLA Bhuvan Kapri also visited the hospital, offering condolences and assurances of further support. “We will ensure all possible help to the families of the deceased,” said Kapri.
While railway authorities deemed the incident an unavoidable “run-over case,” the families of the victims have demanded an investigation, suspecting negligence. The conversation between one of the deceased and a gatekeeper minutes before the accident raises concerns about procedural lapses.
