Balasore Rail Mishap; Repair Work Carried Out Without Approval: CBI

New Delhi, Aug 25: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has informed a special court that unauthorized repair work, undertaken with awareness of potential consequences, was executed at a level crossing near Bahanaga Railway Station where a tragic triple-train incident occurred in June. The mishap resulted in the loss of 296 lives.

Among the individuals detained in connection with the incident is Arun Kumar Mahanta, a Senior Section Engineer responsible for signalling. Mahanta has presented a plea for bail before the special CBI court situated in Bhubaneswar.

Counter to his appeal, the investigative agency conveyed to the court that Mahanta undertook the maintenance work on level crossing gate number 94 close to the station without obtaining the required authorization from senior divisional signal and telecom engineers. Additionally, the work was done without an approved circuit diagram, media reports said.

The CBI asserted that Mahanta personally oversaw the activity at level crossing gate No.94 and that he was fully cognizant of the potential repercussions of his actions.

Rejecting Mahanta's bail request, the court emphasized, "As per protocol, the accused-petitioner was responsible for ensuring that any testing, maintenance, or modifications carried out on the existing signal and interlocking systems adhered to the sanctioned plan and guidelines."