The Karnataka government made a special flight arrangement for those who are from the state and got stuck in Odisha’s Balasore after deadly train accident on Friday evening. A team of Volleyball players and their coaches who were stuck in Kolkata will also be sent through flight, as the trains in the route are cancelled.
Karnataka minister Santosh Lad who is monitoring the rescue operations of Kannadigas affected in the train accident said that a total of 32 people will be brought to the state on air. He tweeted, “In the wake of the Odisha train disaster, all trains plying through the route have been cancelled. Therefore, flight arrangements have been made for a total of 32 people, including state athletes & their coaches, who had gone to Kolkata for the National Junior Volleyball games, and were unable to return.” The athletes will reach Bengaluru on Sunday morning.
A group of around 110 passengers from Karnataka were said to be on the 12864 SMVB – HWH (Bengaluru-Howrah) Superfast Express, which involved in a collision with the 12841 Shalimar – Chennai Central Coromandel Express and a freight train. The survoiurs, who were the pilgrims were on their way to Sammed Shikharji in Jharkhand when the incident occurred.
Meanwhile, The State Emergency Operations Centre has established helplines (1070, 080-22253707, 080-22340676) to address the needs of victims and their families affected by the Balasore train accident. The Karnataka Railway Police has released helpline numbers to gather information about individuals from the state who were onboard the ill-fated train.
