Aditya.Anand @timesgroup.com TWEETS @anandaditya
A 25-year-old man lost a leg after falling into the gap between the train and platform while trying to board a moving train at Thane station on Saturday.
His wheelchair-driven father and his mother, who witnessed the horrific accident, are yet to be told that their son’s leg had to be amputated because of the severity of the injuries.
Anupam Suraj Kumar, 25, a resident of Darbanga, Bihar, had been frequently visiting Mumbai for the past few months as his father, a cancer patient, was undergoing treatment at KEM hospital, Parel. On Saturday afternoon, the family was to board the second-class AC compartment of the Darbanga-bound Pawan Express.
By the time they reached platform no.7 of Thane station, the train had already started moving. Kumar immediately parked his father’s wheelchair on the platform and tried to open the compartment door while running parallel to the train, so that he could stop the train and then get his parents on board. When that didn’t work, he tried to get into an adjoining compartment, when he slipped through the gap.
Stunned passers-by watched in horror as Kumar screamed for help, while passengers on board scrambled to pull the chain to stop the train.
However, despite attempts to pull him out, Kumar remained stuck in the gap for twenty minutes.
“He was stuck in such a manner that any movement of the train could have cost him his life. We decided on moving the train back, so that he could be pulled out,” said a railway official. Kumar was rushed to Jupiter Hospital. “His left leg had to be amputated due to the injuries,” said GRP Thane inspector Jat Chand said, adding that Kumar was trying to board the train carrying not only holding a laptop and cell phone, but also lugging a huge suitcase.
Kumarparents, UmaandVijay,are still in shock.
“They don’t know about the leg. Theyarerestinginthehospital,”saida GRP official who accompanied Kumar to the hospital.
GAP WIDER THAN STANDARD MEASUREMENT Shreeshankar, who witnessed the accident, said there was a huge gap between the platform and train at Thane station.Accordingtoarailwayofficial, the gap at Thane station is around 15 to 17 inches wide, when the standard width of the gap is supposed to be 8 inches.
“While Kumar should have definitely not tried to board a moving train, the issue of the huge gap must addressed urgently by the railways,” said Mumbai Rail Pravasi Sanghatana’s Madhu Kotian.
The wide gap between platforms and train footboards, however, would takesometimetobeaddressedasthere is a shortage of funds. “This is a problem in several stations, including major ones like Dadar,” the official said.
The accident spot (left); Anupam’s father (extreme right), who is a cancer patient, is yet to be informed that his son (centre) has lost his left leg
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