Cricket craze causes train crash killing 14

The tragic train crash in India’s Andhra Pradesh, which resulted in the loss of 14 lives in October 2023, occurred as the drivers were distracted by a cricket match they were watching on their phones, India’s railways minister said.  

The fatal collision in Indian state took place as hosts India played England during the one-day World Cup.

According to Indian media, the Rayagada Passenger train hit the Visakhapatnam Palasa train from behind on the Howrah-Chennai line in Kantakapalli. Over 50 passengers were injured.

“The accident happened because both the loco-pilot and co-pilot were distracted by the cricket match,” Indian news agency quoting Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw as saying.

“Now we are installing systems which can detect any such distraction and make sure that the pilots [train drivers] and the assistant pilots are fully focused on running the train.”

While the probe report conducted by the Commissioners of Railway Safety (CRS) is yet to be made public, a preliminary railway probe, a day after the accident, had held the driver and the assistant driver of Rayagada Passenger train responsible for the collision as it passed two defective auto signals violating norms. Both crew members were killed in the accident.

Hundreds of millions of fans in cricket-crazy India tuned in to watch the live broadcast of the World Cup match, which the hosts won.

India has one of the world’s largest rail networks and has seen several disasters over the years, the worst in 1981 when a train derailed while crossing a bridge in Bihar state, killing an estimated 800 people.

In June 2023, a three-train collision killed nearly 300 people in Odisha state.