Duty time over, loco pilot walks off duty; Goods train block Kanhangad station

KASARAGOD: The loco pilot walked out of the train after stopping the goods train on the wrong track, stating that his duty hours were over. The incident took place at the Kanhangad railway station. The goods train was stopped at the first platform, where passenger trains usually arrive at the station. Due to this, passenger trains with scheduled stops at Kanhangad could not stop at the first platform. Passengers who came to board the trains were the ones who suffered.

Platform one is designated for trains bound for Shornur. Because passengers could not board there, the passenger trains to Shornur arrived at the third platform instead. Many travelers were unaware of this change. A new loco pilot arrived in the morning to move the goods train.

It was reported that the loco pilot of the goods train was leaving after his duty hours. However, the authorities have not yet provided an explanation for why the goods train was stopped by changing the track. It is also unclear whether an investigation has been initiated into the incident. It is known that action will be taken soon to resolve the problem.

Last February, a goods train ran for about 80 km without a loco pilot. The train was running from Katwa in Jammu and Kashmir to Uchi Basi near Mukerian in Punjab. The 53-wagon freight train was stopped at Katwa station. The investigation revealed that the loco pilot had left without applying the hand brake on the slightly sloping track. The train, which started moving on its own, was stopped after five stations. Accidents were avoided by closing the rail crossings on the route and changing the paths of other trains. On the downhill sections, the train ran at a speed of 100 km/h. Fortunately, there were no accidents.