7 months ago
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The locomotive aviator of the commuter bid that was progressive successful a deadly collision successful Chhattisgarh past month was not “fit” to run the bid arsenic helium had nary cognition of the basal information rules, according to an probe study submitted this week.
The Mainline Electrical Multiple Unit (MEMU) bid had sped past the awesome successful ‘red’ and collided with a stationary goods bid connected November 4, leaving 12 radical dead, including the pilot. Another 19 radical were injured.
Commissioner of Railway Safety Brijesh Kumar Mishra, who inquired into the circumstances that led to the devastating collision successful the Bilaspur Division of South East Central Railway, reported that the Loco Pilot had lacked the qualities required to grip the MEMU train, including cognition of the rules and timely decision-making. He concluded that the Loco Pilot was not acceptable to enactment connected the MEMU train.
Failed aptitude, cognition tests
In his study sent to the Railway Board connected December 8, Mr. Mishra said the Loco Pilot had “failed” successful an aptitude trial held connected June 9 this year. During the show appraisal for grading conducted connected November 22 past year, his people successful ‘knowledge of safety’ was lone 2 retired of 7. In the 2 telephonic calls that helium made to the Chief Loco Inspector portion moving the train, the Loco Pilot had sought clarifications connected insignificant MEMU operating issues, which besides indicated his deficiency of knowledge, the study said.
“The problems for which the Loco Pilot contacted the Chief Loco Inspector are of a regular quality and should person been resolved by the Loco Pilot himself. The troubleshooting directory is besides fixed to the Loco Pilots for remembering the assorted occupation shootings. It intelligibly shows deficiency of cognition and assurance connected the portion of the Loco Pilot,” helium said.
Safety rules violation
Describing the circumstances that led to the accident, the Commissioner said that the Loco Pilot had violated the rules connected passing the signals successful the ‘caution’ aspect. When a awesome was successful the ‘yellow’ position, the Loco Pilot should person proceeded astatine the prescribed velocity and been prepared to halt astatine the adjacent signal. However, helium failed to halt astatine the adjacent signal, which was successful ‘red’.
The adjunct Loco Pilot, who was authorised to instantly use exigency brakes without immoderate hesitation successful lawsuit the Loco Pilot was over-speeding, and the bid was apt to walk the awesome successful danger, did not bash so. The series of events intelligibly indicated that timely enactment was not taken by either the Loco Pilot oregon the adjunct Loco Pilot to power the bid aft passing the awesome astatine caution facet (single yellow), which resulted successful the bid crossing the adjacent awesome successful danger, and subsequently colliding with the goods train, the CRS said successful his report.
During the inquiry, Mr. Mishra said, the cognition of the bid manager oregon defender was besides recovered to beryllium “very poor”. “Though helium had a competency certificate dated November 1, 2025, for moving successful automatic awesome territories, it appeared that to had been issued without owed introspection regarding his cognition for moving connected trains,” the study said.
Blood intoxicant level
The Loco Pilot’s humor intoxicant level could not beryllium ascertained arsenic his assemblage was disposed of without immoderate circumstantial petition from aesculapian oregon information section officials for the postmortem to find his intoxication status. They did not petition immoderate abstracted trial either. In the lack of these details, it would not beryllium imaginable to reason whether the Loco Pilot was intoxicated astatine the clip of the accident, Mr. Mishra said.
The humor intoxicant contented of the adjunct Loco Pilot was reported arsenic little than 3 mg/dl. According to the Indian Railway Medical Manual, lone a ‘zero’ intoxicant level is acceptable. However, the Principal Chief Medical Director of South East Central Railway said that a humor intoxicant level up to 10 mg/dl is considered negative, arsenic determination are galore metabolic reasons to tin origin the intoxicant level successful the humor to emergence to that point.
