It was the last journey for a large number of migrant workers. It serves as a reminder to survivors that “we don’t have a choice”
The Chennai-bound Coromandel Express collided head-on with the back of a cargo train in the Balasore region of Odisha, killing many who had fled their villages in quest of a better life and a means of support.
The Howrah-Chennai Coromandel Express’s first three coaches were completely destroyed in the Friday night crash, which contributed to the high death toll because they were unreserved coaches packed to the gills with the most vulnerable members of society. To date, 294 passengers have been confirmed dead, the majority of whom were migrant workers. Many of them are from outlying areas of West Bengal.
Since it was a three-train collision, the rescue efforts at the scene near Bahanaga Bazar station have lasted for 40 hours. The Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express’s final four coaches were knocked off by the derailed bogies of the Coromandel Express, which was traveling on a parallel track.
As they count the dead, evaluate their own injuries, and consider the most difficult decision they must make at this point—what to do—survivors of the Coromandel Express still hear the huge sound they recollect from the moment of impact.
Mamun Akhtar, who is receiving medical care at the Soro Hospital in Balasore, declares, “We have to go for work and we have no choice.”
Many migrant workers in the hospital ward where wounded passengers are being treated mirrored Akhtar’s feelings when News18 visited.
Masud Rahman, 23, was on route to Chennai to start a new job at a hotel. “I felt the train bogie fall, but I can’t recall anything more. That I am still alive is beyond belief. We are regular folks who live in poverty. We are all required to work for a living. I have obligations,” he said to News18.
Rahman was traveling to Chennai with three other people from Murshidabad who were also looking for work.
We all traveled there in search of a better life. On that day, there was a loud boom, and someone dragged me. I recall waking up in the hospital as my next memory, according to a seriously hurt Shaun Alam.
The Mamata Banerjee administration has set up buses to transport them back to Bengal in groups. Almost every district in the state has lost someone or has someone missing as a result of the disaster. Many losses are being mourned by certain families.
Three brothers from a family in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas area died while en route to Tamil Nadu in quest of employment. Residents of Charanikhali hamlet in Basanti Uttar, Haran Gayen (age 40), Nishikant Gayen (age 35), and Dibakar Gayen (age 32), spent the most of the year working in the southern state.
They returned home a few days ago, and, according to a PTI report, they were traveling back to Tamil Nadu aboard the Coromandel Express in quest of agricultural labor jobs.
Officials said that a total of 110 residents in the area were hurt, 44 were reported missing, and 16 had already made it home. Six of those killed are from Basanti block, including the three brothers, two are from Kakdwip, and one is from each of the following blocks: Joynagar-2, Baruipur, Canning-1, and Magrahat-1.
There are also reportedly 11 individuals missing from Jalpaiguri district’s Nagarakata area. They were among a group of 14 people who traveled to Bengaluru together in quest of employment. They were all taking the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Yesvantpur Express home for the first time. Sagar Kheria, 30, was one of the group that passed away in the traffic, while two others were hurt.
