Train Sabotage Attempt Foiled in Uttar Pradesh

Alert Train Staff Prevent Major Accident

On the night of June 1, a serious attempt to sabotage train tracks was stopped near Dohna station in Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly district. This was the seventh such incident in the state this summer.

Quick Thinking Saves Lives

At around 11:55 pm, the alert train drivers and manager of the Tanakpur-Bareilly City passenger train noticed something wrong on the tracks. They acted quickly to prevent a disaster.

How the Sabotage Was Done

The unknown culprits had tampered with the track switching system. They put crushed stones, which are used to stabilize railway tracks, between the moving and fixed parts of the track switch. This jammed the mechanism that helps trains change tracks smoothly.

The moving part of the track switch, called the tongue rail, was made useless. This could have caused the train to derail by forcing it off the correct path.

The saboteurs also bent a metal plate that connects the overhead equipment to the track switch. This plate helps the rails expand and contract with temperature changes while keeping the switch working.

Fast Response to the Incident

The Station Master at Dohna station reported the incident right away. The Northeastern Railway’s Izzatnagar division confirmed it was sabotage. A police report was filed at Bhojipura station.

A special police team is now working to find those responsible for this dangerous act.

A Worrying Trend

This incident is part of a worrying trend in Uttar Pradesh. Just the night before, train drivers of the Delhi-Shamli MEMU train stopped another disaster. They saw a large iron pipe, stones, and a broken concrete tube on the tracks near Shamli station.

Earlier, on the night of May 29-30, an attempt to derail the New Delhi-Bhubaneswar Tejas Rajdhani Express was stopped. Stones were found on the tracks between Bheerpur and Meja Road in Prayagraj.

In the same month, there were two more attempts to derail trains. These happened near Dalelnagar and Umar Tali stations of Hardoi district. Someone had placed a wooden log on the rail track.

More Recent Incidents

Uttar Pradesh has seen many similar incidents in recent months:

• April 22, 2025: A large metal door was found on the rail track between Utraitai Junction and Bakkas railway station. A freight train hit it, damaging several parts that hold the rail to the concrete base.
• April 16, 2025: The Delhi-bound Garib Rath Express almost derailed after hitting a mango tree branch placed on the rail track in Lucknow’s Malihabad area.
• October 6, 2024: An alert train driver stopped the Rae-Bareilly Junction-Raghuraj Singh passenger train just in time. The train manager saw a pile of soil blocking the railway tracks near Raghuraj Singh station.
• October 2, 2024: A fire extinguisher was found on the tracks near Ambiyapur station in Kanpur Dehat.
• September 29, 2024: Another fire extinguisher was found on the rail tracks between Govindpuri and Bhimsen stations in Kanpur.
• September 22, 2024: A small empty gas cylinder was found on a side track at Prempur railway station, between Kanpur Central and Fatehpur.
• September 16, 2024: The Delhi-bound Swatantrata Senani Express’s engine was damaged after it hit a wooden log on a rail track between Ghazipur Ghat and Ghazipur City railway station.
• September 9, 2024: A gas cylinder was placed on the rail track between Barrajpur and Utripura on the Kanpur-Kasganj route. It was hit by the Bhiwani-bound Kalindi Express.
• November 17, 2024: A heavy iron chunk was found on the rail track near Dibnapur halt railway station in Bareilly.
• January 13, 2024: Near Bijauria railway station of Bareilly, someone had put boulders on the track and removed parts that hold the rail in place.
• December 6, 2023: A piece of rail was hit by the Banaras-bound Shiv Ganga Express in Bulandshahr’s Khurja area. Police found seven pieces of rail in total.