Ludhiana: 5-year-old boy suffers head injury as miscreants pelt stones at moving Sutlej Express near Baddowal
PTC Web Desk: Several passengers, including a four-year-old boy, were injured when miscreants pelted stones at the Sutlej Express near Baddowal, close to the Ludhiana railway station, last Thursday evening. The Sutlej Express (Train No. 14630), en route from Hanumangarh to Ludhiana, was passing through the area when the incident took place.
During the stone-pelting incident, four-year-old Prince was severely injured when a stone hit his head, fracturing his skull. Other passengers also sustained injuries. The sudden assault caused panic among the passengers, leading to chaos inside the coach. Several passengers pulled the emergency chain to halt the train, while Train Ticket Examiner (TTE) staff rushed to check on the injured child. Unfortunately, no first-aid facility was available onboard.
Prince, covered in blood, had to cover a 13-km journey before reaching Ludhiana railway station, where he received first aid. His mother, Savita, who was accompanying him, said they had boarded the train from Ganganagar at around 1 pm for Ludhiana. As the train neared Baddowal, stones started hitting their coach, and one struck Prince on the head. Other passengers in the same coach were also injured by the stones.
Despite the severity of the incident, neither Government Railway Police (GRP) nor RPF officials were present in the coach to assess the situation or provide assistance to the injured passengers. It was only after passengers forcibly stopped the train that the injured were attended to.
The child has been referred to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGI) in Chandigarh for further treatment.
Meanwhile, Ferozepur division senior DSC Rishi Pal termed the incident as "extremely unfortunate" and assured that efforts were underway to apprehend the perpetrators.
- With inputs from our correspondent
