Goods train runs driverless for 80km from Jammu to Punjab
A goods train reportedly traveled nearly 80 kilometers without a driver, reaching speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour before being stopped near Unchi Bassi in Punjab's Dasuya on Sunday. The incident took place between 7:25am and 9:00am and involved a 53-wagon train loaded with chip stones. No casualties or property damage have been reported.
Investigation initiated, no casualties reported
According to a Northern Railway spokesperson, the train stopped at the Kathua railway station in Jammu and Kashmir for a driver change. However, it allegedly started to roll down a slope gradient track on the Jammu-Jalandhar section. Officials also added that neither the loco pilot nor the assistant loco pilot were on board the freight train. "After starting the train, the driver went somewhere but he forgot to put hand break due to which train moved...itself," an official said.
Railway top cop provides details on matter
Railway Police Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Gurdev Singh said that all railway crossings on the route were immediately closed for road traffic, and some mechanical methods were used to slow the train down. Furthermore, the ASI stated that officials were arriving from the Ferozepur railway division to investigate the matter. ANI reported that the train's movement was due to the natural downward slope toward Pathankot in Punjab.
Viral clip of pilot-less goods train
Recalling horrors of Odisha triple train crash
The development came nearly a year after the horrifying triple train crash in Odisha's Balasore district in June last year. The crash involved two passenger trains moving in opposite directions near Bahanaga Bazar station and a stationary goods train. It left nearly 300 people dead and more than 900 others injured, after which the Indian Railways ordered a probe into the matter.