Alert driver averts train accident near Thanjavur junction

Two passenger trains delayed by an hour due to the incident

: A major train accident between the Chennai-Thanjavur Uzhavan Express and Tiruchi-Karaikal Passenger was averted at Thanjavur junction on Thursday morning, thanks to the presence of mind of Sahadevan, the locopilot of the express train.

The Tiruchi-Karaikal passenger train was on platform number 4 at Thanjavur junction at 7.45 a.m. At the same time, Uzhavan Express from Chennai, which should have gone to platform number 3 entered platform number 4 due to wrong setting of the points.

When the Uzhavan Express was about 200 metres from platform 4, Mr Sahadevan spotted the passenger train on the same platform. He applied the brakes bringing the train to a halt and averted a head-on collision. Senior railway officials rushed to the spot for an enquiry.

Later Uzhavan Exporess was switched to platform 3.

Two passenger trains – Mayiladuthurai-Tiruchi and Mayiladuthurai-Thanjavur passengers –

were delayed by an hour due to the incident.

Manjula Rangarajan, Divisional Railway Manager, Tiruchi, ordered an enquiry into the incident at an Assistant Officer level. Railway sources said that preliminary enquiries revealed that Uzhavan Express was about to be received on platform No. 3. But points have not been set right for this. Instead points were set in favour of receiving the train on platform No. 4.

Enquiry will find out the official responsible for the wrong setting of points and also any fault in technology.