Senior railway official begins probe into Madurai train coach fire

Commissioner of Railway Safety, Southern Circle, A M Chowdhary commenced his inquiry into the train compartment fire accident on Sunday.

Chowdhary, while answering a question, told reporters that presently, he did not see any conspiracy angle. The senior official said he held enquiries with passengers, who were treated here for their injuries, and recorded statements from them on how the fire spread in the coach that was parked in a yard.

He said it would take at least one month to complete the inquiry and submit the report to the authorities. Chowdhary inspected the train coach, stationed in the railway yard here, that had caught fire on Saturday leading to the deaths of nine people and injuries to eight others.

An official from the Southern Railway and a member of the Railway Board were part of the inquiry, the scope of which covers the cause of the fire.

Earlier today, the nine bodies of the accident victims were taken to Uttar Pradesh's state capital Lucknow by air, according to airport officials.

Rules related to railway accidents mandate a statutory inquiry in every accident leading to loss of human lives, grievous injuries or serious damage to railway property.