At least 15 killed and dozens injured as freight and passenger trains collide in India

Accident took place near one of the busiest railway stations in the country

The crash caused two of the passenger train's carriages to derail near New Jalpaiguri station, in West Bengal state. AP

At least 15 people were killed and about 50 were injured when a freight train rammed into a passenger train in India's north-eastern West Bengal state on Monday.

Passengers, the freight train's driver and the guard on the passenger train are among the dead, the country's railway authorities said.

The accident happened at 9am when the Kanchanjunga Express was hit from the rear by a freight train, causing two of the passenger train's carriages to derail near New Jalpaiguri station.

It is one of the largest and busiest railway stations in India and serves trains travelling between eight remote north-eastern states connected to the rest of the country by a narrow strip of land between Nepal and Bangladesh, known as the "Chicken’s Neck".

The express train was travelling from Agartala in Tripura state to Sealdah station in Kolkata, in West Bengal.

“There was a massive jolt. Everybody started crying that there was an accident," one passenger said. "We got off and saw a train had rammed into our train."

Jaya Verma Sinha, chief executive of India's Railway Board, said an initial investigation suggested the accident appeared to caused by human error. “The freight train driver disregarded the signal and overshot and rammed into three bogies," she said. "One of the coaches was the guard room and two were parcel rooms.

“There are passenger casualties. The driver of the freight train and the guard in the last coach of the express train were also killed. It is prima facie a human error, but we will know after the inquiry.”

Indian authorities launched a rescue operation after the deadly train crash in West Bengal, with about 50 passengers taken to hospital. AFP

About 50 passengers have been taken to hospital but their injuries are not serious, Ms Sinha said.

The crash affected other services, with at least 10 trains stranded and several diverted to other routes.

The passenger train was expected to resume its journey with the undamaged carriages on Monday evening.

Ms Sinha said the rescue operation had been brought to an end and the tracks were to be repaired. Residents of nearby villages helped the rescue effort, she added.

“I was at the mosque when people said there was a train accident. We rushed to the site and saw the scene. Both the trains were on the same line, the last coaches were damaged,” villager Rajat Ali told local media.

India's Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said each of the families of those killed would receive compensation of one million rupees ($11,900). "An inquiry has been initiated," he said after meeting passengers receiving treatment in hospital.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced compensation of 200,000 rupees to each of the victims' families, with 50,000 rupees to be given to the injured. The compensation will be paid from the Prime Minister's Relief Fund.

Train accidents are common on India's vast and ageing railway network, which is undergoing a long-needed revamp. The government said it planned to spend about $130 billion on efforts to modernise the network.

At least 14 people were killed and more than 50 were injured in a collision in October in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.

An investigation found the driver and his assistant were watching a cricket match when their train collided with another passenger train. Both men were killed.

One of the country's worst rail accidents occurred last June, when more than 300 were killed and hundreds were injured when two express trains and a freight train collided in the eastern state of Odisha.