India Train Mows Down Crowd Killing Scores
More than 60
people have been killed and 100 hurt after a train ran into a crowd near
Amritsar in India's northern Punjab state, police told the BBC.
The victims
were standing on the railway tracks watching celebrations for Dusshera, a Hindu
festival marking the triumph of good over evil.
They did not
hear the train approach as they watched a firecracker-filled effigy of the
demon king Ravana burn.
Children are
said to be amongst the dead.
Spectators
were watching the effigy burn, and a fireworks display, when they were asked by
organisers to move back - towards the railway tracks a short distance away,
reports say.
According to
eyewitnesses, many were busy filming the festivities on their phones, and did
not notice the train approaching at high speed.
Police say
the noise of the firecrackers and the crowd may have stopped victims from
hearing the train.
The train
that hit the crowds was travelling from Jalandhar to Amritsar
Eyewitness
Amar Nath told BBC Punjabi that people were "mauled" by the train.
"I removed
the bodies from the tracks... my hands were full of blood."
Local
resident Amit Kumar told the BBC the celebrations were a regular occurrence:
"Every year, people sit on the tracks when festivities take place
here".
Punjab Chief
Minister Amarinder Singh described the incident as "absolutely
tragic", and wrote in a tweet that local authorities were being
"mobilised".
"We
will do everything possible to assist the injured," he said, adding:
"[I] have directed the district administration to leave no stone unturned
to ensure the best possible treatment for them."
He said that
victims would be given medical aid for free.
A state of
mourning has been declared - offices and schools in Punjab will be closed on
Saturday, Reuters reports
Questions
are being raised how the celebration was allowed just a short distance away
from the railway tracks.
Effigy-burning
is only allowed when different departments, including fire safety officials,
grant permission.
The state
chief minister has ordered an inquiry to ascertain whether permission was
granted - and by whom.
Train
accidents are fairly common in India, where much of the railway equipment is
out of date, although numbers have declined in recent years.
Celebrates
the triumph of the Hindu god Rama over the 10-headed demon king Ravana
Marks the
victory of good over evil
In large
parts of India it is celebrated with Ramlila - a dramatic folk re-enactment of
the 10-day battle
Staged annually
- often over 10 or more successive nights
Festival
culminates with devotees burning effigies of Ravana which are lit with
firecrackers in open grounds
The burning
takes place around sunset as Ravana is said to have died when there was
"neither sunlight nor dark"
In 2005,
Unesco recognised the tradition of Ramlila as a "Masterpiece of the Oral
and Intangible Heritage of Humanity"
FROM bbc.com/news/world-asia-india
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