Fire engulfs three coaches of Taj Express in Delhi

A fire broke out in three coaches of the Taj Express near Delhi's Okhla area, Railway officials confirmed on Monday.

The incident occurred in the general coaches with a chair car, with the train running about 10 hours behind schedule. It had departed from New Delhi Railway Station en route to Jhansi when the blaze was detected between the Okhla and Tughlakabad railway stations.

The train was promptly halted after the fire was noticed in the coaches.

Senior railway officials, including the Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) of Delhi, quickly arrived at the scene. Deepak Kumar, Chief Public Relations Officer of Northern Railway, reported that coaches D-2, D-3, and D-4 of the Taj Express (train number 12280) were affected by the fire. "Taj Express caught fire in the Okhla-Tughlakabad block section. Senior officials including DRM Delhi rushed to the site," he stated.

The Delhi Fire Service was alerted around 4:24 PM regarding the fire incident near Sarita Vihar. Atul Garg, Director of the Delhi Fire Service, noted that six fire tenders were dispatched to extinguish the flames. Fortunately, no casualties have been reported so far.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, KPS Malhotra, provided further details, stating, "A PCR call vide DD Number 43 A was received at 4:41 PM about a fire in a train. The Investigative Officer (IO) reached the spot near Apollo Hospital. Upon arrival, it was observed that three train coaches were on fire. No injuries have been reported. Passengers were relocated to other coaches and deboarded safely."

The fire resulted in damage to several train coaches, and the affected train was immediately stopped once the fire was detected. According to railway officials, further action is being undertaken to address the incident and assess the extent of the damage.