Train in India hits crowd celebrating Hindu festival
AKIPRESS.COM - At least 55 people died and 60 were injured in northern India on Friday night after a train struck people celebrating a Hindu festival at a railway track, police said, CNN reports.
"The train came and it ran over the people who were there. The people were standing on and near the track," senior local police official Parbhjot Singh told CNN.
The incident took place in Amritsar, located in Punjab state, to mark the Hindu festival of Dussehra.
Singh said celebrants were burning an effigy when the train barreled through the crowds.
Deepak Kumar, spokesperson for Indian Railways, which operates the national rail system, confirmed that there was only one train involved in the accident. During fireworks and loud cheering, those standing on and around the tracks apparently did not hear the oncoming train.He tweeted that all offices and schools are closed as the state remains in mourning.
Free treatment at government and private hospitals would also be offered to those injured, said Singh.