LAHORE: The Tezgam daily express, one of the oldest and most popular trains of Pakistan started in the 1950s, was engulfed in fire in the wee hours of Thursday morning, killing at least 74, including women and children.
While passengers of the train disputed the statements of Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed claiming that the incident took place due to gas cylinders carried by tableeghi jamaat members, the incident is an addition to the many accidents that have occurred during the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf’s (PTI) government.
Below are the train accidents to take place since Sept 2018:
September 16, 2018: Nine bogies of the Peshawar-bound Khushal Khan Khattak Express from Karachi derailed near Attock. 20 passengers were injured.
September 27, 2018: Another Peshawar-bound train derailed in which 11 bogies overturned in Sehwan, Sindh.
December 18, 2018: 12 children were injured as a passenger train crashed into a school van near Narowal, Punjab. Local witnesses said the accident happened due to dense fog and because the gate at the crossing was left open.
June 9, 2019: Twenty-three bogies of a Karachi-bound freight train derailed in Sukkur.
June 20, 2019: Three people were killed when a passenger train collided with a stationary cargo train at Makli Shah, near Hyderabad.
July 11, 2019: At least 24 people died when the Akbar Express had a parked cargo train at the Walhaar Station near Sadiqabad.
August 30, 2019: At least 12 people were injured when three coaches of Karachi-bound Rehman Baba Express, along with their locomotive, derailed near Toba Tek Singh.
October 4, 2019: At least two passengers were injured when two bogies of Peshawar-bound Rehman Baba Express derailed at the Taxila railway station.
October 21, 2019: 73 killed in Tezgam train inferno near Rahim Yar Khan after a cylinder bursts.
It may be mentioned here that while negligence and incompetence of railways authorities are responsible for most major train accidents, violations of rules and regulations by passengers also become the reason behind accidents that affect both the perpetrators and other innocent lives.
A few common misconducts by railway commuters commit while travelling are as follows:
- Doors are not closed when the train starts running
- Passengers take their heads out of the windows
- People travel on train roofs when tickets are unavailable or when they intend to save money
- Passengers jump off running trains to avoid the ticket checker
- Passengers travel with excess baggage and animals
- Passengers carry flammable dangerous materials such as gas cylinders
- Several tickets are reserved on a single identity card