The death toll from Thursday’s derailment of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express in Gonda district has tragically risen to four. On Friday morning, the mutilated body of a 40-year-old male passenger was discovered, identified as Rajesh Rao of Maharajganj district.
Uttar Pradesh Relief Commissioner GS Naveen Kumar confirmed that the body, which was found headless, was identified through personal belongings and parts of the body. “The headless body was identified as Rajesh Rao, 40, son of Rampreet of Bariyarawa village, Maharajganj,” Kumar stated. The body was discovered when railway officials, using cranes to lift a derailed wagon, spotted the remains at the accident site.
The derailment has now claimed the lives of four individuals:
- Rajesh Rao, 40, from Maharajganj
- Rahul, 38, from Chandigarh
- Saroj Singh, 31, from Araria, Bihar
- One unidentified passenger
Earlier, the search for Rajesh Rao had led his wife, Jyoti Rajbhar, to the derailment site. In a video that went viral on social media, Rajbhar expressed her anguish and described her desperate efforts to locate her husband. “I last spoke to him at around 1 pm when the train reached Lucknow. He promised to reach Gorakhpur by 8 pm, but his phone has been switched off since then,” she tearfully recounted. Rajbhar had searched hospitals and morgues but was unable to find him until she arrived at the accident site.
In addition to the fatalities, two other passengers were admitted to a hospital in Lucknow. One is reported to be out of danger, while the second is in a serious condition and has undergone amputation.
The cause of the derailment is under investigation, with authorities working to determine the factors that led to this tragic incident. Rescue operations and support for the affected families are ongoing as the community grapples with the aftermath of this devastating accident.
Sources By Agencies