Thane: An 18-year-old Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) student died after falling from a running local train on Tuesday morning while travelling to his examination centre in Kalwa, triggering renewed anger over commuter safety on the suburban rail network.
According to the police, the incident occurred between Mumbra and Kalwa railway stations during peak rush hours in the morning. The victim, Soham Kothare, who was a resident of Azde village in Dombivli East, had been allotted an examination centre at Manisha Nagar, Kalwa. He was on his way to appear for his HSC board examination, scheduled from 11 am to 2 pm, when the tragedy struck.
The police said that on Tuesday morning, Kothare boarded a crowded local train from Dombivli to reach his exam centre in Kalwa. Due to the heavy rush inside the compartment, he lost his balance and fell from the moving train around 10 am.
“Kothare was found lying unconscious on the tracks with severe head injuries and multiple bruises all over his body. He was rushed to the Thane Civil Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival. Further investigation is underway to determine the exact circumstances of the fall and to trace eyewitnesses,” Archana Dusane, Senior Police Inspector of the Thane Government Railway Police (GRP), said.
The Mumbra–Kalwa stretch is considered one of the most accident-prone sections of the suburban railway network, with multiple incidents of commuters falling from overcrowded trains reported over the years, particularly during peak hours.
This incident has once again drawn sharp reactions from passenger associations, who blame overcrowded trains and a lack of officials’ accountability for repeated fatalities on the suburban rail system.
Siddhesh Desai, a member of the Railway Passengers Association, said several commuter groups will hold a condolence meeting at 8 am on Wednesday, followed by a protest outside the Thane Railway Station.
“We are demanding action. We want the railway officials to take responsibility in cases of passenger injuries and deaths. If accountability can be fixed in cases involving airplanes and other modes of transport, why is no one held responsible for railway accidents?” he asked.
He added that in most railway accident deaths, no disciplinary action is initiated against officials, despite repeated incidents of commuters losing their lives after falling from overcrowded trains.