A railway porter was killed during a shunting operation when the train he was working on allegedly reversed without warning at Barauni Junction Railway Station in Bihar’s Begusarai district, crushing him between buffers.
Shunting is the process of reorganising coaches into complete trains.
Eastern Central Railways (ECR) confirmed the incident, identifying the victim as Amar Kumar Rao (35) from Dalsinghsarai, Samastipur. He was working on the Lucknow-Barauni Express (15204) at Platform 5 of the railway station, officials said.
As passengers raised the alarm, the engine driver allegedly left the spot.
“The matter is being probed. Necessary action would be taken against the engine driver if he is found guilty,” an ECR official told The Indian Express.
Rao, who lived alone in Barauni, had got the job on compassionate grounds after the death of his father.
Barauni Railway Union head Shiv Prasad Yadav condemned the incident. “Such incidents take place because of an increase in the number of trains but there’s no corresponding increase in staff. We demand action against erring railway employees, including the engine driver. There is a system of raising an alarm when a train is sent to the yard,” he said.
