11 people run over by train in India

NEW DELHI: At least 11 people were killed on Wednesday after rumours of a fire on their train caused them to jump off and were crushed to death by another incoming train, officials said.

The incident in the western Maharashtra state is the latest to hit India´s creaking rail network, which carries millions of passengers each day and has seen several disasters over the years. “People were run over by a train,” said Ayush Prasad, a top official of Jalgaon district where the accident occurred, some 400-kms from the country´s financial hub of Mumbai.

“11 people have died and about five are undergoing treatment.” It was not immediately clear whether the fire alarm was false. A spokesperson for Indian Railways was quoted by local media as having said that someone had pulled the “alarm chain” on a Mumbai-bound train, following which “a few passengers got down from the train”.