3 Dead As Commuters Walk On Tracks After Mumbai Local Train Disruptions

Three people were found dead on railway tracks in Mumbai today as commuters were forced to walk on the tracks after several local trains were disrupted and stranded for over hours. The disruption in Mumbai's transit system was caused by a fire that broke out near Kanjurmarg station at 10.00 am today. Two people were found dead on the Ghatkopar-Vikhroli stretch, both of whom have been sent to Rajawadi Hospital. Another person died in Bhandup. 

The fire at Kanjurmarg station caused the collapse of the signalling system between Thane and Vikhroli. Before that, an overhead wire technical glitch had also occurred between Mulund and Thane, worsening the situation.

Commuters on the Central Railway who set out to work on the first day of the week were seen stranded and queued up due to the lack of signal clearance for both slow and fast line trains in the up and down directions.

After waiting for hours with no trains moving, several passengers climbed down onto the railway tracks and began walking toward the next station, risking their lives.

The railway administration is carrying out repair work. Replacing cables could take around four hours, pushing the normal functioning of the Central Railway's traffic system until late night.

The fresh railway disruption in Mumbai comes just a day after the Central Railway had taken a "Mega Block" for maintenance, leaving angry passengers wondering how such a massive technical failure could occur the very next day.

On Monday evening, officials confirmed that three of four train lines were restored and urged passengers to not walk on the tracks.

The disruption of railway services also impacted vehicular traffic on roads. A massive traffic jam hit the Eastern Express Highway, leaving vehicles crawling.

(With inputs from Amjad Khan)