Yogi Adityanath at Kushinagar accident site.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath faced protest by people when he went to Kushinagar, where 13 children were killed in a train-school van collision on Thursday. An angry Adityanath asked protesters to stop the drama. “Narebaazi band karo, nautanki band karo (stop raising slogans, stop this drama), I have come here to express my sympathies,” Adityanath told protesters who were agitated by the death of the school children, reported PTI.
The angry protesters even prevented the chief minister from visiting the accident site. As Adityanath reached the accident spot after visiting the district hospital, an angry crowd raised slogans against railway and local authorities. They demanded that railway personnel should be posted at the unmanned crossing to avoid such accidents.
The Chief Minister said strict action would be taken against those found guilty while adding that the driver of the van, prima facie, appears to have caused the accident as he was wearing earphones at the time. He also raised questions over the age of the driver. “I spoke to the Rail Minister this morning. Prima facie, it appears to be the fault of the van driver. He was driving with his ear-phones. Even things have come forward regarding his age,” Adityanath said.
Thirteen children were killed and eight others injured when a train rammed into their school van at an unmanned railway crossing in Kushinagar, around 50 km from Gorakhpur. The children, students of Divine Public School, were killed on the spot when the Thawe-Kapatanganj passenger train crashed into the van at the unmanned crossing gate at Behpurva, said Railways spokesman Ved Prakash.
Read Also: Kushinagar accident LIVE UPDATES
Kushinagar accident: The train was on way to Gorakhpur from Siwan.
The train was on way to Gorakhpur from Siwan. There were at least 25 passengers, including children who were below the age of 10, in the van, the official said.
Gorakhpur: CM Yogi Adityanath visited BRD Medical College where the treatment of 4 children and driver of the van, which collided with a train at an unmanned crossing in Kushinagar, is underway. The accident claimed the lives of 13 children. pic.twitter.com/7KAh5W9o0o
— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) April 26, 2018
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal ordered an inquiry into the accident and announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the kin of the deceased. The minister also said that the Railways will provide an ex gratia amount of Rs 1 lakh for those with serious injuries and Rs 50,000 for those simple injuries.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at site of the accident in which 13 school students died after collision between a school van and train, in Kushinagar pic.twitter.com/LDi4gRWcgj
— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) April 26, 2018
Congress president Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, expressed grief over the death of the children. Gandhi also urged his party workers to help families affected by the accident in all possible ways. “I am deeply pained to hear about the death of 13 innocent children in a tragic accident in Kushinagar. I urge local Congress workers to help families affected by the mishap in all possible ways,” the Congress chief tweeted.
(With PTI inputs)