12 coaches of Bikaner-Guwahati Express derail in Bengal, 9 killed, 45 injured

There has been a train accident near Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. Here many bogies of Bikaner-Guwahati Express have derailed.

There has been a train accident near Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. Here 12 bogies of Bikaner-Guwahati Express have derailed. 9 people died in the accident and about 45 people were injured. Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav will reach the spot this morning. Disturbing pictures of passengers trapped in the debris after the train accident have surfaced.

According to West Bengal government sources, at least 50 injured have been rescued so far. Sources said that 10 passengers were seriously injured. 24 people have been sent to Jalpaiguri District Hospital while 16 people have been sent to Moynaguri Government Hospital. New Frontier Railway sources said that the serious passengers will be shifted to the North Bengal Medical College in Siliguri.

According to railway sources, several passengers are feared trapped inside the derailed coaches and gas cutters are being used to cut the damaged coaches.

According to officials, the accident happened at around 5 pm between New Dimohani and New Maynaguri railway stations in West Bengal, when train number 15633 was going from Bikaner to Guwahati. The train had left Bikaner Junction on Wednesday and was to reach Guwahati on Thursday evening. A compensation of Rs 5 lakh has been announced for the next of kin of the deceased while Rs 1 lakh has been announced for the seriously injured.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav tweeted on Thursday, "Twelve coaches of Bikaner-Guwahati Express derailed in an unfortunate accident near New Maynaguri (West Bengal) this evening. I am personally monitoring the situation for speedy rescue operations.

Railway Minister told ANI, "I am reaching the spot on Friday morning, medical team and senior officials are present on the spot. Prime Minister Modi has also inquired about the situation and the rescue operation. Our focus is on the rescue. Also the ex-gratia amount." Announced."

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Video footage from the accident site showed people being rescued from the wreckage of several damaged train coaches lying next to the elevated train track. Police can be seen on the spot helping with relief and rescue operations along with local people and other commuters.

A Northeast Provincial Railway (NFR) spokesperson in Guwahati said the accident took place around 5 pm in an area under the Alipurduar division of the NFR. He said the accident took place at a distance of more than 90 kms from Alipurduar Junction. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who held a meeting with chief ministers to review the COVID-19 situation, inquired about the accident from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Banerjee briefed the Prime Minister about the relief and rescue operations. Banerjee has spoken to the District Magistrate of Jalpaiguri in this regard.

A passenger said, "We got a sudden jolt. We were all shaking vigorously and the luggage kept on the upper seat fell here and there.

Indian Railways has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the dead, Rs 1 lakh for the seriously injured and Rs 25,000 for those with minor injuries.

According to railway officials, due to the accident on the main line, all trains going towards Guwahati have been stopped for the time being.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee spoke to the district officials and senior state government officials have reached the spot. Banerjee tweeted, "Very concerned to hear about the tragic accident of Bikaner-Guwahati Express at Maynaguri. Senior officials of the state government, DM/SP/IG-North Bengal are monitoring the rescue and relief operations. The injured will get medical help at the earliest." (Input- Language and from ANI...)

"There was a loud jolt followed by a loud noise, I fell down from my seat and then everything was over," a passenger who survived the train accident in West Bengal on Thursday said this while sharing his experience. Seven people died, while 45 passengers were injured when the Bikaner-Guwahati train derailed in New Jalpaiguri district. 12 coaches of the train derailed and some of them overturned near Domohani.

A Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) spokesperson said in Guwahati that the accident took place at around 5 pm under Alipurduar Division of NFR. A partially damaged coach rammed onto another coach due to the collision, while some coaches overturned after falling down the slope. Hundreds of people from nearby villages gathered at the spot and helped in evacuating the stranded passengers. Due to the collision, some coaches separated from the rest of the train, while the wheels of some derailed.

A passenger named Sanjay, who survived the accident, told a news channel, "It was around 5 o'clock in the evening, I was talking to my wife on the phone. Suddenly I heard a loud sound and felt a strong jolt. It made me fall from my seat and after that everything was over. When I regained consciousness, I was being taken inside an ambulance.

Some people were searching for their loved ones who were with them on the train at the time of the accident. An injured man said, "My mother and I were having tea when there was a loud sound and a loud jolt. The luggage kept on the upper berth fell here and there. Local people rescued me, but I have not been able to trace my mother yet. I don't know what happened to her." Jalpaiguri District Officer Maumita Godara Basu said, "We recovered the bodies from the accident site. At least 45 passengers were injured in the accident.” The District Magistrate said that the death toll could rise as the condition of some of the injured passengers was critical. Basu said the rescue team was doing a thorough search of each compartment amid darkness and thick fog.

A railway official said in New Delhi that the Commissioner of Railway Safety would investigate the cause of the accident. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav, Chairman Railway Board and Director General (Safety) have left for the accident site. Local resident Manohar Pal, who was rescuing people on the spot, said that he was at a tea stall with his friends when they heard a loud noise. "We initially thought it was some kind of explosion," Pal said. But as soon as he moved in that direction, he saw that the coaches of the train collided with each other. Heard people pleading for help from derailed coaches. We immediately tried to get people out.

Another major achievement of the government in the National Assembly was the passage of the SBP Amendment Bill 2022

After approval of important bills, Prime Minister Imran Khan invited Finance Minister Shaukat Tareen to his seat and gave special congratulations.

Another major achievement of the government in the National Assembly is the SBP Amendment Bill.

Another major achievement of the government in the National Assembly , the SBP Amendment Bill 2022 was also passed. According to details, the opposition, which had raised objections to the legislation regarding the SBP, failed to block the government's way during the National Assembly session. The government also managed to pass the SBP Amendment Bill 2022 by a majority vote during the National Assembly session.

After the approval of important bills, Prime Minister Imran Khan invited Finance Minister Shaukat Tareen to his seat and gave special congratulations. Earlier, the PTI government also managed to pass the Supplementary Finance Bill 2021 by a majority vote during the National Assembly session. Many members of the opposition did not attend the meeting.

Twelve members of the opposition and 12 members of the government were absent from the house.

The government had a lead of 18 members in the House. Prime Minister Imran Khan specially attended the meeting. The Finance Minister moved a motion in the House for the passage of Finance Supplementary Bill 2021. All the amendments proposed by the opposition for the Finance Supplementary Bill 2021 were rejected. According to media reports, some amendments in the mini- budget presented by Finance Minister Shaukat Tareen were approved clause by clause in the House.

Under which GST will not be levied on a 200 gram can of milk worth Rs.500. Formula milk worth more than Rs 500 will be subject to 17% GST. Small shops will not be taxed on bread, bread, chapatti, sher mal, bun, ras. Tax exemptions on food items will remain. Sales tax on red pepper and iodine mixed salt has been abolished. Federal Interior Minister Shaukat Tareen while presenting the Finance Supplementary Bill 2021 in the National Assembly for approval said that there is an uproar that the poor have been destroyed and there will be a storm of inflation.

Out of 343 billion, 280 billion will be refunded, then what is the storm ? No more taxes are being levied in the bill. It is not tax but documentation of economy. Everybody runs away from documentation. The purpose of the supplementary bill is to document the economy.Documentation will show who paid how much tax. Unless we pay 18-20% tax to GDP, there will be no 6-8% growth.

China steps up construction of Beijing on Bhutan's disputed border: improving local people's lives

According to data and images from the commercial satellite Hawkeye 360, traces of Chinese construction and area cleanup have appeared in the western border area of ​​Bhutan since the beginning of 2020. Reuters

China has accelerated building construction along its border with Bhutan, Reuters reported. Analysis pointed out that China's move is aimed at locking India's "throat".

According to reports, the US data analysis company Hawkeye 360 , based on satellite images, found that China has accelerated the construction of more than 200 buildings last year, including two-storey buildings, at six locations on the border with Bhutan , including two-storey buildings to store equipment and supplies. Then lay the foundation and build the building.

Experts pointed out that these six locations are all located in the disputed area between China and Bhutan, and are also about 9 to 27 kilometers away from the Doklam area where China, Bhutan and India meet .

Some Indian defense sources pointed out that these border constructions will allow China to expand control and monitoring of the relevant areas, and may build defense facilities.

Bhutan's foreign ministry declined to comment on the Reuters report.

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded by saying that the relevant buildings are to improve the working and living conditions of the local people, emphasizing that construction activities on its own territory are internal affairs of China's sovereignty.

Bhutan is one of the smallest and least populated countries in the world and has been voted the happiest country in the world. The country is located between China and India, and shares a border of nearly 500 kilometers with China in the northwest and north. On October 14 last year, China and Bhutan signed a "Memorandum of Understanding", establishing a "three-step roadmap" for resolving the border issue between China and Bhutan.

However , the Observer Research Foundation, India's largest private think tank , issued a report stating that China has long occupied the disputed territory of neighboring Bhutan and legalized a fait accompli. China has seized the "throat" of India's border areas. The situation is not in India's favor.

China has been held since 1984 24 rounds of border talks and 10 , but so far it has not been able to fully resolve border disputes. Bhutan has historically had strong cultural, religious and economic ties with Tibet. Bhutan is also the only UN member state in the world that has neither established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China nor with the Republic of China.