Action initiated against 6 cops: CM
CHANDIGARH: Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh on Monday said action had been initiated against six police personnel, and seven employees of the Amritsar Municipal Corporation after they were found guilty of dereliction of duty in the case pertaining to the 2018 Dussehra train accident in which 58 people lost their lives.
Singh told reporters that departmental action had been initiated against the six policemen, and a charge sheet had filed against the seven employees of the civic body, on the basis of findings of a magisterial inquiry report. He was reacting to reports of inaction by the state government in the tragedy.
The probe into the incident was conducted by divisional cominjured missioner Jalandhar B Purushartha on the orders of the chief minister.
On October 19 last year, 58 people were mowed down by a train that hurtled through a festive crowd, which had spilled onto the railways tracks while watching the burning of a Ravana effigy on Dussehra at Dhobi Ghat near Jaura Phatak.
As many 71 people were also in the mishap.
The CM said his government was also taking all possible steps to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future, pointing out that detailed guidelines were issued to police and civil administration suggesting corrective measures, including creation of a single-window/authority to accept applications and grant permissions for such events. The police commissionerates of in Amritsar, Ludhiana and Jalandhar, besides sub-divisonal magistrates in other areas, had already been appointed as “single authority” for this purpose, he added.
It was also stipulated that the application would contain all relevant information along with a detailed checklist, and the organisers would be asked to submit it at least 15 days before the event.