Beyond the Headlines: What can India do to avoid another train tragedy?

At least 288 people were killed and hundreds injured in the three-train crash in the eastern state of Odisha.

It jolted India.

News crews rushed to the accident spot in Balasore to find mangled train coaches rammed on top of each other. At least 80 bodies remain unclaimed.

But this is not the first such tragedy. India has seen many deadly train accidents before. The country’s rail network is huge, spanning more than 100,000km, but it is also old and overburdened. It carries more than 25 million passengers every day, and there is even more demand it cannot meet.

This week on Beyond the Headlines, host Suhail Akram considers what may have led to the Odisha train crash, why train derailments are such a huge problem in India, and asks what operator Indian Railways could do to improve safety for its millions of daily commuters.

if you go

The flights

Flydubai flies to Podgorica or nearby Tivat via Sarajevo from Dh2,155 return including taxes. Turkish Airlines flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Podgorica via Istanbul; alternatively, fly with Flydubai from Dubai to Belgrade and take a short flight with Montenegro Air to Podgorica. Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Podgorica via Belgrade. Flights cost from about Dh3,000 return including taxes. There are buses from Podgorica to Plav.

The tour

While you can apply for a permit for the route yourself, it’s best to travel with an agency that will arrange it for you. These include Zbulo in Albania (www.zbulo.org) or Zalaz in Montenegro (www.zalaz.me).

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