3 Kids Crushed To Death By Train While Playing Near Railway

Iranian state media reported that the train derailed after hitting an excavator left too near the tracks Iranian Red Crescent via AFP

KEY POINTS

Two children died on the spot
The parents of the victims lived close to the railway lines and worked as laborers
The children involved in the accident had gone to pluck jujube, also referred to as ber

Three children were crushed to death by a passenger train near Sri Kiratpur Sahib in India on Sunday, while another one sustained injuries, police said.

The incident occurred when four children of migrant workers were playing near the railway track near the bridge over the Sutlej river, The Times of India reported.

The children, who had gone to pluck jujube fruit, also referred to as ber, were crossing the Lohand bridge when they were run over by the train.

The victims were identified as Rohit Kumar, 11, Mahindra, 7, Vicky, 10, and Pawan, 10.

According to Hindustan Times, the incident happened when train number 04501 from Saharanpur to Una in Himachal Pradesh reached near Kiratpur Sahib.

Two children died on the spot. The third child was severely injured after his arm got amputated upon impact and also later died during treatment at the civil hospital, Kiratpur Sahib.

The fourth child was injured in the incident and was admitted to a hospital, said police.

The parents of the victims lived close to the railway lines and were working as laborers.

According to the child who survived the incident, Pawan, they were coming back via railway bridge after having jujube fruit across the river. They did not notice nor hear the train at first, and it was too late by the time they saw it, Hindustan Times reported.

Pawan said he survived as he fell from the railway line and hung onto the bridge.

Police have sent the bodies of the deceased children for a post-mortem, assistant of sub-inspector Jagjit Singh said.

Punjab School Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains tweeted, "In a very sad incident, 3 children have lost their lives in a Rail Accident in Kiratpur Sahib. An enquiry has been ordered. My sincere condolences to the grieved families."

Meanwhile, former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh also expressed grief and sought compensation for the affected families via Twitter.

"Distraught to hear about the news of a passenger train crushing 4 children causing 3 of them to die on the spot near Sri Kiratpur Sahib today. My condolences are with the family and I urge @PunjabGovtIndia to provide appropriate compensation to the families," said Singh in a tweet.