GUWAHATI | Eight passengers sustained minor injuries after the Kolkata-Sairang Express derailed near Digaru railway station in Assam early Wednesday. All the injured passengers were discharged from Sonapur District Hospital after receiving primary treatment, while railway authorities activated helplines at several stations to assist passengers and their families.

The derailment involved five coaches and the locomotive of Train No. 13125. The incident occurred around 6.54 am, when the train was being received at Digaru station, about 44 km from Guwahati, to allow the Jan Shatabdi Express to pass. According to the Chief Public Relations Officer of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), the Kolkata-Sairang Express was scheduled to halt at Digaru for the passage of the Jan Shatabdi Express but could not stop in time.

“The train couldn’t stop in time and five coaches derailed. Luckily, there was no casualty or major injury as the train speed was slow at that time,” the CPRO said. The eight injured passengers were identified as Rambual Saiha Mizo (35), Nitish Kumar Roy (29) and Akshay Chakraborty (33), all from Hojai; Jimi Bermon (28) of Ampara in Kokrajhar district; and Kohinur Mandal (7), Montaj Begum (35), Nujahan Bibi (30) and Kolim Uddin (40), all from Bogibari in Bilasipara.No fatalities or serious injuries were reported.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said all passengers were safe and that the state government was coordinating with the Railway Ministry. He added that stranded passengers had been provided with basic necessities and alternative train arrangements had been made for their onward journeys.

Following the derailment, train movement on both tracks at Digaru was temporarily suspended, leaving several trains stranded at different locations. Train No. 15769, the Alipurduar Junction-Mariani Junction Intercity Express, was short-terminated at Kamakhya. Two services, Train Nos. 75727 and 75728, operating between Guwahati and Haibargaon, were cancelled.Railway authorities restored movement on the unaffected track around 11 am, nearly four hours after the incident.

Trains held up at different locations were then allowed to resume their journeys gradually, while clearance and restoration work continued on the affected track. NFR activates helplines Northeast Frontier Railway opened helpline services at several stations to provide information and assistance to passengers and their relatives. Katihar: 9002041806, 9002041952, 9771441956 Kishanganj: 06456226794, 06456226795 New Jalpaiguri: 6287699880 Guwahati: 03612731621, 2731622, 2731623 Lumding: 03674263858, 265958, 263831 Badarpur: 03843269546, 269548, 268424, 269547 Silchar: 03842245414, 245419, 245423