No casualties in Latehar train accident, confirm Rail officials

Railway officials have confirmed that there were no casualties in the train accident that occurred in Jharkhand's Latehar district, after the Patna-bound Palamu Express derailed following a blast on the railway tracks by suspected Maoist rebels.

"There has been no casualty, no injuries in this accident," Indian Railways PRO Anil Saxena said.

Meanwhile, police sources confirmed that security forces have been rushed to the area.

"Police forces have left their base at night to reach the spot of the accident. All precautions were taken and we reached the spot safely, as the main targets of Maoist rebels are mostly security personnel. Railway officers and other workers have also reached the spot. Maintenance work is underway and services will resume very soon," said Superintendent of Police of Latehar, Anup Birthare.

Tuesday's incident resulted in the derailment of three coaches and the locomotive engine of the Palamu Express at 8.40 p.m. The driver of the locomotive immediately applied brakes on hearing sound of an explosion, but could not avert the accident due to damage caused to the tracks by the blast.

This occurred after Maoist forces had called for shutdown in Jharkhand to protest the killing of their 12 colleagues by police earlier this month. The rebels alleged the police killed them in a fake encounter.