Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters
Train accidents on suburban Mumbai local routes have claimed 23,473 lives in the past 11 years, information sought under the Right to Information Act has revealed.
"As per information given by Central Railway, in the last 11 years (till 2012) a total of 23,473 people lost their lives in various train accidents on suburban Mumbai routes," RTI activist and president of Thane District Railway Passengers Association Om Prakash Sharma, who sought this information from Central Railway, told reporters in Thane on Thursday.
"Out of the total number of victims, 14,554 were killed while they were crossing the tracks," Sharma said.
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Mumbai's local trains kill over 2000 people
Image: Office-goers travel atop a crowded suburban trainPhotographs: Reuters
Central Railway's suburban locals run on various routes between the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and Karjat, Kasara, Panvel stations, among others.
Sharma said that 4,561 commuters died after they fell from speeding trains; 253 died after being hit by poles located along the tracks, while 90 people died by falling in the gap between the train and the platform.
The death toll on account of other accidents was 4,015, he added.
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Mumbai's local trains kill over 2000 people
Image: Commuters disembark from crowded suburban trains during the morning rush hourPhotographs: Vivek Prakash/Reuters
The number of peoples injured in suburban train accidents during this period was 11,981, he said
According to him, the information also revealed that 2,536 people died on the Western Railway's suburban route between Churchgate and Virar in 2009-2012.
"Almost 70 per cent of those injured in the train accidents succumb to injuries later. The deaths and injuries on Mumbai's suburban routes is a matter of concern and we have urged the railway authorities to take corrective steps in this regard," Sharma said, adding that despite appeals, many people still risked their lives everyday by crossing the tracks.
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