The bodies of Paramjit Singh and Surinder Singh, who were burnt alive when three bogies of the Frontier Mail caught fire, were brought to Delhi by the Shan-e-Punjab Express early Friday.

Thirty-eight people were killed and 13 injured in the mishap, which took place near the Ladhowal railway station, 10km from Ludhiana, on Thursday morning.

Relatives of the two victims, whose bodies were brought in the luggage compartment in plywood coffins, began wailing as the train entered Platform 5.

Ten Northern Railway boy scouts and nursing staff with two stretchers were waiting to lift the bodies, but were beaten to the task by the relatives and friends, who took the coffins away.

Journalists jostled to get a clear view as the bodies were brought out of the compartment.

Paramjit's elder brother Gurpreet told rediff.com that the family members could not believe what had happened.

"I hoped against hope that at least he would be alive. But deep down, I knew my brother's chances of survival were slim when I saw TV pictures of the compartment.

"Somebody whispered that nobody could possibly survive such a conflagration and I had a sinking feeling that he was right. Our inquiries confirmed our worst fears," he said.

An elderly relative wept as Gurpreet put his arm around his shoulder. Paramjit was a businessman travelling to Amritsar.

Surinder's brother Ravinder had an identical tale. He said Surinder was travelling to Amritsar on a business trip.