A PIL petition has been filed before the Supreme Court, urging the formation of a probe panel led by a retired judge from the apex court to investigate the recent train accident in Balasore, Odisha. The accident, which occurred on June 2, resulted in the tragic loss of 288 lives and left over 1,000 people injured. The mishap involved the Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express and the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express trains.
Advocate Vishal Tiwari, the petitioner, has requested the Central government and Indian Railways to comply with the following directions:
1. Establish an expert commission comprising a retired Supreme Court judge and technical experts to analyze and assess the existing risk and safety parameters in the railway system. This commission should identify the root cause of the incident and propose necessary safety modifications within a span of two months.
2. Ensure the immediate implementation of the Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system known as KAVACH to safeguard public safety effectively.
The plea argues that such accidents constitute a violation of the right to life and liberty as guaranteed by Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. It further contends that previous government-led inquiries into similar derailments have failed to produce the desired outcomes.
The petitioner emphasizes that the authorities' unregulated and negligent actions highlight the necessity for judicial intervention in matters concerning public safety and the preservation of life, which are of utmost importance for any functioning state machinery. Additionally, such incidents have wide-ranging consequences, including train cancellations and diversions that cause significant inconvenience to the public. The widespread damage to public property further exacerbates the issue, as it ultimately leads to the loss of taxpayer money.
Furthermore, the petitioner asserts that a separate compensation mechanism is required to address the aftermath of such tragedies.
TAGS: Public interest litigation (PIL) Supreme Court probe panel retired apex court judge train accident Odisha's Balasore June 2 288 deaths 1 000 injured Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express expert commission risk and safety parameters root cause systematic safety modifications Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system KAVACH Article 21 violation of life and liberty Central government Indian Railways compensation mechanism unregulated actions negligent actions judicial intervention public safety taxpayer's money loss of life Indian Constitution government inquiries derailments public property train cancellations diversions of trains inconvenience tragedies
