Kanpur train tragedy: Prime objective is to rescue people from wreckage, says Railway PRO

Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh) [India], Nov. 20 (ANI): Manzar Karar, Public Relations Officer (PRO) Northern Central Railways, on Sunday said special buses and food supplies have been arranged for the injured victims of Indore-Patna express which was derailed at the Hanshi-Kanpur intersection today at 3.20 a.m. Apart from that eight Divisional Railway Managers' (DRM) have been rushed to the spot to take stock of the situation, the officer said. At the moment, the exact cause of derailment was not specified, however, Karar said the probe is on. "We are investigating, but our prime objective, as of now, is to rescue the victims. Around 14 coaches have been affected," Krar told ANI. Meanwhile, the death toll due to the derailment has increased to 63, Inspector General of Police, Kanpur, Zaki Ahmed confirmed to ANI. Indian Railways has issued helpline numbers for assistance. Kanpur Rural DM helpline no: 05111-271050; police-05111-271577; Magistrate Hospital duty 9454416414 Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has instructed Principal Secretary Health Arun Kumar Sinha to ensure no shortage of medicines and blood for the treatment of patients from the train accident. Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu tweeted that an enquiry has been ordered into the accident and that strict action will be taken against all those responsible. "Sr officers ordered to go to spot immediately, they are on way to accident site.local MP, MLAs other functionaries rushed. MOS going. Rail,Dist,state, NDRF teams are geared up to deal with the accident & offer all kind of help.We r doing our best, to deal with sad accident," he said. The Union Minister further said that ex-gratia will be announced for the unfortunate passengers who lost their lives and also to those who were injured. Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to the bereaved. Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister said that he is anguished beyond words on the loss of lives and said that his thoughts are with the bereaved families. "Prayers with those injured in the tragic train accident. I've spoken to @sureshpprabhu, who is personally monitoring the situation closely," he added. Home Minister Rajnath Singh offered his condolences saying he was deeply pained by the loss of lives and that his thoughts are with the bereaved families. "I have spoken to DG NDRF and instructed him to rush NDRF teams to Pukhrayan. He is also leaving for Pukhrayan to oversee the rescue ops," Rajnath tweeted. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has directed the Director General of Police (DGP) to personally monitor the relief operations. Meanwhile, Railways Ministry spokesperson Anil Saxena told ANI that several people have been rushed to nearby hospitals with injuries, and the casualties may go up. (ANI)