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Two British tourists die in northern India train derailment | |
(35 minutes later) | |
Two female British tourists have died in a train derailment in northern India. | |
At least five other people were also injured, at least one of them seriously injured and British, when two carriages of the Kalka to Shimla “toy train” derailed on Saturday. | |
They were among a group of 37 British tourists travelling on the five-carriage World Heritage-listed train. It was rounding a curve when the coaches derailed, said railway official Neeraj Sharma. | |
Suresh Prabhu, India’s railway minister, has ordered an investigation into the accident. | |
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “Following a train crash in Haryana, we are urgently looking into reports of British nationals affected and stand ready to provide consular support.” | A Foreign Office spokesman said: “Following a train crash in Haryana, we are urgently looking into reports of British nationals affected and stand ready to provide consular support.” |
The 96km narrow-gauge railway in the foothills of the Himalayas is known for its scenic views. | |
It was opened in 1903 to link Shimla, the summer capital used by the then British rulers of India, with the country’s northern plains. | It was opened in 1903 to link Shimla, the summer capital used by the then British rulers of India, with the country’s northern plains. |
It was the second rail accident to have happened in India on Saturday. Nine coaches of a train derailed in southern India, killing at least two people and leaving several injured. | |
Police and rescuers helped pull out dozens of passengers from the coaches, which fell onto their side near Gulbarga in Karnataka state after the train derailed at about 2:15am, Indian Railway spokesman Anil Saksena said. | |
The cause of the derailment was not immediately known. | |
India operates one of the world’s largest railway networks, carrying about 23 million passengers a day. | |
Safety standards on the massive state-run railway have been an ongoing concern amid a spate of accidents. Last month, two passenger trains derailed over a bridge in central India while crossing a track that was flooded by heavy monsoon rains, killing at least 24 people. |