A high-level inquiry has found “wrong signalling” to be the main reason for the Balasore train accident and flagged “lapses at multiple levels” in the signalling and telecommunication (S&T) department, but indicated the tragedy could have been averted if past red flags were reported.
The independent inquiry report submitted by the Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) to the Railway Board said notwithstanding the lapses in signalling work, remedial actions could have been taken by the S&T staff if “repeated unusual behaviour” of switches connecting two parallel tracks were reported to them by the station manager of Bahanaga Bazar, the spot of the accident.
