Indus Valley Times

By Sudam Patra

Balasore, June 7: Hours have passed since the catastrophic train crash left behind a trail of devastation.But the tears the tragic incident gave to hundreds of people are not going to dry up any time soon.

The family members and relatives of the deceased and seriously injured passengers who have gathered at different morgues and mortuaries since Saturday morning are inconsolably weeping as the losses they have suffered are irreparable and were beyond their wildest dreams.

Masikul Bibi of West Bengal was on Sunday night found bitterly crying at Balasore District Headquarters Hospital as she was informed that her 26-year-old son had died in the train crash.

“My son was going to Chennai for work. He had Left home on Thursday. I last spoke to him on Friday evening. He said he was going to Chennai to work as a cook to support the family. He has left behind his wife and two little children. We are labour-class people. How can we survive now,” said Masikul.

Gobinda Sahu and Annapurna Sahoo lost their 28-year-old son in the accident. They got the body of their son at Bahanaga after hours of frantic search in the piles of bodies at a temporary morgue.

At All India Medical Institute of Medical Sciences-Bhubaneswar, the scene is quite shocking. Everyone’s heart will melt and eyes will get moist at the very sights of the family members and relatives breaking down as they identify the bodies of the loved ones after raising the white clothes on their faces and receive the body from the authorities following completion of due procedure.

Manturam Manjhi, a daily-wage worker for Bihar who is undergoing treatment at Balasore, has suffered serious head injuries. He is yet to come to terms as he lost one of his close friends in the accident.

“We had started our journey together. We were on the way to Chennai. What shall I tell his wife and family members when I return home?” says Manturam, with tears gushing down his cheeks.