India’s Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw added that it was “inappropriate” to release more details ahead of the final investigation report into the crash.
Two days after the three-train collision that killed at least 288 people near Balasore, India’s Railways Minister announced that the cause and “responsibles” for India’s worst train disaster in decades have been identified.
“We have identified the cause of the accident and the individuals responsible,” Indian Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told ANI news agency on Sunday, adding that it was “not unreasonable” to disclose more details ahead of the final investigation report.
According to the minister, “the change that occurred during electronic switching is the cause of the accident,” referring to a complex computer system that controls traffic on the tracks to prevent trains from colliding. “The perpetrator and the manner in which the accident happened will be determined after a proper investigation,” he added.
A diverted train due to human error?
Confusion reigns at the moment, but the Times of India, citing the preliminary investigation report, said on Sunday that “human error” may have caused the three-train collision, one of the country’s worst train disasters in history.
The Coromandel Express, which connects Kolkata with Madras, was given the green light to operate on the main line on Friday but was diverted on a route where a freight train was already running due to human error, the newspaper said.
The passenger train then crashed into the freight convoy at a speed of around 130 km/h. Three wagons then fell onto the adjacent track and crashed into the rear of an express train running between Bangalore and Kolkata. This collision caused the most damage, the Times adds.