India News

9 coaches, engine of Mumbai-bound Duronto Express derail near Asangaon, no casualties

Published

9 years ago

August 29, 2017

9 coaches, engine of Mumbai-bound Duronto Express derail near Asangaon, no casualties

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Railway officials claimed that the derailment was caused by landslides due to incessant rainfall in the Kasara Ghat region over the past few days. This is the fourth derailment in the country within a span of just 10 days

Nine coaches and the locomotive of Nagpur-Mumbai Duronto Express derailed, early on Tuesday morning, between Asangaon and Vasind railway stations in Maharashtra’s Thane district. No casualties have been reported so far and though rescue and relief operations are underway.

This is the fourth incident of train derailment within a span of just 10 days.

However, unlike the recent incidents – like the derailment of the Kalinga-Utkal Express in Muzzafarnagar, Kaifiyat Express in Auraiya and a local train in Mumbai which have all been blamed on various lapses on part of the railway authorities – Tuesday’s mishap is said to have been caused due to landslides that have rocked the Kasara Ghat region over the past few days due to incessant rainfall.

“The cause (of derailment) is sudden landslide due to heavy rains. But the driver did an excellent job of applying emergency breaks,” Sunil Udasi, Chief PRO of the Central Railway told reporters in Mumbai. “Senior officers including the General Manager left for the site within 15 minutes of receiving the information. Doctors, rescue and relief personnel have reached the site too. We have made elaborate arrangements with the help of the state government to ply passengers through buses from the accident sites to Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT),” Udasi added.

Another railway official has been quoted by different media agencies as saying: “It is suspected that a portion of the tracks was washed away due to heavy rains in the Kasara Ghat section since there has been a long spell of incessant and torrential rains since the past few days.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Interestingly, Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu, who is generally very prompt with posting any development related to the rail services – especially in case of accidents – on micro-blogging website Twitter, has maintained a studied silence since the derailment. Prabhu had taken moral responsibility for the derailments that occurred over the past 10 days and had reportedly offered to resign as railway minister after the Kaifiyat Express accident but Prime Minister Narendra Modi had apparently asked him to “wait”. The political grapevine in New Delhi has been abuzz with talk that Prime Minister Modi had not taken very kindly to Prabhu tweeting about his resignation offer.

Meanwhile, the derailment of the Mumbai-bound Duronto Express has also badly affected train services on the suburban railway network in and around Mumbai. The movement of local trains between Titwala and Kasara had to be was stopped, severely crippling commuters during peak office-going hours.

The derailment has also affected long distance trains plying on this route. Four trains have been diverted via Kalyan-Lonavala-Pune-Duand-Manmad while three trains en-route to Mumbai’s CSMT were terminated at the Igatpuri station.

The recent derailments:

On 25 August, four coaches of a local train running on Mumbai’s Harbour line derailed due to technical fault injuring six persons. While a probe is still on to determine the cause of the derailment, the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) has reportedly blamed the mishap on compromises with the track safety, particularly in regard to the crossover on it between Mahim and Wadala stations.

On 23 August, Kaifiyat Express – which was on its way to Delhi from Azamgarh, went off tracks at around 2.40 am after colliding with a dumper. The incident left 80 passengers injured and fuelled a change of guard in the Railway Board with Air India managing director Ashwani Lohani being appointed as its chairman, taking over from AK Mittal who had to step down. Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu had also reportedly offered to resign seeking moral responsibility but Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked him to “wait” .

On 19 August, the Haridwar bound Kalinga-Utkal Express derailed in UP’s Muzzafarnagar killing 24 people and injuring 156 passengers. Preliminary probe into the mishap has pointed as lapses in the maintenance of track and faults with signaling as possible causes of the derailment.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Related Topics:Narendra Modi Suresh Prabhu Utkal Express

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India News

Delhi-NCR sees second spell of rain and thunderstorms in four days

Delhi-NCR experienced another spell of rain and thunderstorms on March 18, with IMD forecasting more showers over the next few days.

Published

7 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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Delhi and parts of the National Capital Region witnessed another spell of rain, thunderstorms, and strong winds on Wednesday evening, marking the second such weather event in the past four days.

The sudden change brought relief from unusually high temperatures recorded earlier this month. According to officials, the temperature at Safdarjung — the city’s base weather station — was recorded at 24 degrees Celsius at 7 pm.

The India Meteorological Department had earlier issued an alert predicting light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning on March 18. Several areas across the capital experienced gusty winds along with brief but intense showers.

More rain likely over next two days

The weather department has forecast partly cloudy skies for March 19 and 20, with chances of light rain or thundershowers occurring once or twice during the day. On March 21, skies are expected to remain cloudy with the possibility of light showers continuing.

Conditions are likely to stabilise from March 23 onwards, with forecasts indicating a return to partly cloudy to clear skies across the region.

Weather activity across India to intensify

The IMD has also indicated widespread weather activity across multiple regions of the country in the coming days. Rainfall is expected to intensify in several states, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds.

In the northeastern region, heavy rainfall is likely over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya during the early part of the week.

Meanwhile, the western Himalayan region is also set to witness a shift in weather patterns. Himachal Pradesh is likely to receive heavy rainfall on March 19 and 20, while Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir may experience heavy showers around March 20.

India News

Centre pushes states to cut levies to boost PNG adoption

The Centre has asked states to reduce local levies and streamline approvals to accelerate PNG adoption and city gas infrastructure growth.

Published

9 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has urged states and Union Territories to ease local levies and procedural barriers affecting City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects, in a bid to accelerate the adoption of piped natural gas (PNG) as a cleaner fuel alternative.

In a communication sent to Chief Secretaries, Petroleum and Natural Gas Secretary Neeraj Mittal highlighted that high right-of-way charges, road cutting fees, lease rentals and other local levies imposed by urban bodies are discouraging investments in CGD infrastructure.

High costs slowing expansion

The ministry pointed out that the CGD sector, particularly PNG supply to households and commercial establishments, does not receive direct subsidies. As a result, it depends heavily on viable returns, which are being impacted by excessive and inconsistent local charges across states.

It noted that these financial and procedural hurdles are slowing down infrastructure expansion and affecting the broader adoption of natural gas.

Gap between connections and usage

According to the government, while around 12.63 crore PNG connections have been recorded, only about 1.6 crore are currently active. The ministry stressed that improving ease of doing business at state and local levels could help bridge this gap and expand the consumer base.

Officials believe that rationalising levies may initially reduce local revenues but could lead to higher long-term gains through increased gas consumption and economic activity.

LPG shortage adds urgency

The push for PNG adoption comes amid supply constraints in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), linked to ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Oil marketing companies are currently supplying only 20 per cent of normal commercial LPG demand to states.

To address this, the ministry has proposed increasing LPG allocation to 30 per cent for states that implement reforms supporting PNG and CGD expansion.

Reform-linked incentives for states

The Centre has suggested a set of measures that states can adopt to qualify for higher LPG allocations. These include:

Setting up empowered state and district-level committees for faster approvals
Introducing single-window clearance with deemed approvals within 24 hours
Implementing a dig-and-restore model using bank guarantees instead of restoration charges
Eliminating annual rental or lease charges for CGD infrastructure

The ministry said compliance with these reforms would be verified before granting additional LPG allocations.

Industry support measures

The communication also noted that GAIL and its subsidiaries have already allocated full gas supply to the commercial PNG segment to support businesses affected by reduced LPG availability.

The government reiterated that expanding natural gas usage aligns with its broader push for cleaner and domestically sourced energy.

India News

BJP seals Assam seat-sharing pact, Modi to hold 3 rallies in April

BJP has finalised its Assam seat-sharing plan with allies and is gearing up for an intense campaign led by PM Modi and Amit Shah.

Published

10 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Bharatiya Janata Party has finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections, firming up its strategy alongside National Democratic Alliance partners as campaigning gathers pace in the state.

Under the agreement, the BJP will contest 89 seats, while its allies — Asom Gana Parishad and Bodoland People’s Front — will field candidates in 26 and 11 constituencies respectively. The distribution has been decided after internal deliberations, with the focus now shifting to candidate announcements and campaign execution.

Campaign push led by top leadership

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address three rallies in Assam during the final leg of the campaign. Tentative dates for the rallies are April 1, April 3 and April 6, with events likely to be held in key constituencies.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is also set to spearhead an extensive campaign across the state through March, aiming to energise party workers and strengthen voter outreach.

Candidate selection underway

The party’s Central Election Committee is currently meeting to finalise candidates. Sources indicate that approvals for most constituencies are expected soon, and the BJP may release its complete list of candidates within the next two days.

Ticket distribution remains a crucial exercise, with internal discussions highlighting its potential impact on local political dynamics. Party leaders have also touched upon the proposed delimitation exercise scheduled for 2027, which is expected to have long-term implications for Assam’s electoral landscape.