Root Cause Of Odisha Crash Identified, Says Ashwini Vaishnaw

Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday inspected the restoration work at the accident site in Balasore, where two passenger trains and a goods carriage were involved in a horrific accident, leaving 294 passengers dead and injuring over 1,000 people.

The union minister said that the commissioner of railway safety has investigated the matter and identified the
cause of the incident and the people responsible for it.

"The commissioner of railway safety has investigated the matter and let the investigation report come but we have identified the cause of the incident and the people responsible for it... It happened due to a change in electronic interlocking," Vaishnaw told ANI.

"The root cause of this accident has been identified. PM Modi inspected the site yesterday. We will try to restore the track today. All bodies have been removed. Our target is to finish the restoration work by Wednesday morning so that trains can start running on this track," Vaishnaw said.

On Saturday, the Railways Ministry informed that the restoration work is ongoing at war footing in Odisha's Balasore.

"Restoration work is ongoing at Warfooting at the train accident site in Balasore, Odisha with 1000+ Manpower working tirelessly. At present, more than 7 Poclain Machines, 2 Accident Relief Trains, and 3-4 Railway and Road Cranes have been deployed for early restoration. Officials are closely monitoring the restoration process at the accident site," read the post on the official Twitter handle of the Railways ministry.