Kanpur train accident: Death toll rises to 145; Suresh Prabhu orders forensic inquiry into Indore-Patna Express rail mishap

New Delhi: Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Monday made a statement in Lok Sabha in connection with accident of Indore-Patna Express train near Kanpur.

Ordering forensic enquiry to look into all possible angles of the train mishap, Suresh Prabhu said that guilty will be given strict punishment.

"Forensic enquiry has been ordered to look into all possible angles; guilty will be given strict punishment," Suresh Prabhu said.

Death toll rises to 145

Even as search and rescue operations continue, the death toll in the Kanpur train accident mounted to 145 on Monday. 

Out of 145 deceased, 123 bodies have been identified and 110 handed over to kin, confirmed Javeed Ahmed, Director General, Uttar Pradesh Police.

#KanpurTrainTragedy till UP to 145. 123 bodies identified. 110 handed over to kin. — Javeed (@javeeddgpup) November 21, 2016

Over 200 others were injured when at least 14 coaches of Indore-Patna Express derailed in Kanpur rural area in the wee hours on Sunday due to suspected rail fracture.

Five teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) along with railway and army personnel spearheaded the rescue operations. However, the chances of pulling out more survivors appeared dim.

How the accident took place?

The mishap took place just a little after 3 am on Sunday when the passengers were jolted out of their sleep as the Patna-bound train 19321 jumped the tracks, badly damaging four ordinary sleeper coaches in which hundreds were trapped.

Of the four coaches, the S1 and S2 had telescoped into each other and most of the casualties have been in these two compartments. S3 and S4 coaches also suffered severe damage while an AC III tier coach was also affected but casualties in it were not heavy.