Duggal, Menon, Haldar meet on train incident

New Delhi, Feb 19: Home Secretary V K Duggal, Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon and Director Intelligence Bureau P C Haldar met here today to discuss the situation arising out of the fire on the Delhi-Attari Special train this morning in which 64 people, many of them Pakistanis, were killed and 13 injured.

The meeting assumes significance in view of the killings of many Pakistani nationals in the train explosion.

The government is deliberating on giving visas to the relatives of the victims from the neighbouring country.

Joint Secretary (Foreigners) Asim Khurana in the Home Ministry was also present in the meeting.

Two coaches of the bi-weekly peace train, that connects India with Pakistan, caught fire near Deewana railway station, short of Panipat, following blasts around midnight.

The train had left the Delhi Railway Station at 2240 hrs last night for Attari near Amritsar.

Meanwhile, the meeting of the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoMs) will be held to discuss the naxal situation in the country.

The meeting, chaired by Home Minister Shivraj Patil, is being attended by Finance Minister H R Bharadwaj, Tribal Affairs Minister P R Kyndiah, Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh and senior officials of various ministers.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda and representatives of other naxal-affected states will also be participating in the meeting.

UNI