India: Five killed after fall from moving Mumbai train

On June 9, at least five people died and several others were injured in India after passengers reportedly fell from a moving local train near Mumbra railway station in Thane district, officials from Central Railway confirmed.

The incident took place around 9:00 am as a Kasara-bound fast local train, which had departed from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), was passing through the Diva-Mumbra section, Caliber.Az reports via Indian media.

According to preliminary reports, several passengers were hanging by the footboard due to severe overcrowding.

As the train moved past another local service travelling in the opposite direction towards CSMT, some of the footboard passengers on both trains reportedly collided, leading to at least 12 people falling onto the tracks.

Senior Police Inspector Anil Shinde of Mumbra Police Station said officers were alerted at around 9:15 am and rushed to the scene. “We found at least seven people injured and five confirmed dead. All were immediately shifted to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital in Kalwa. Four of the injured later sought treatment at Jupiter Hospital,” he said.

Eyewitness accounts paint a grim picture of the moments following the collision. “I was crossing from west to east near the platform when I saw two fast trains passing each other at the same time,” said Shiva Sherwai, a resident of Santosh Nagar, Mumbra.

“The one on Platform 4 heading to CSMT was speeding. I waited back and then saw 7–8 people already lying on the tracks, bleeding and crying for help.”

Authorities believe overcrowding was a major contributing factor. During peak hours, Mumbai’s suburban trains often see passengers clinging to the doors due to a lack of space inside. In this case, sources suggest that the passengers standing on either side of the train doors had little room to manoeuvre, making them dangerously vulnerable when trains passed each other on parallel tracks.

By Aghakazim Guliyev