My father was a very good train driver

Family members of Madhab Chandra Dey,the driver of Uttarbanga Express who died in Mondays train crash,say he is being blamed in a cover-up attempt.

Family members of Madhab Chandra Dey,the driver of Uttarbanga Express who died in Mondays train crash,say he is being blamed in a cover-up attempt,for faults of others. They claimed he had been a recipient of the Driver of the Year award from Eastern Railway and was experienced enough to have committed any mistake. He was to retire in 22 months.

My father was a very good train driver and has been in this profession since 1975. If someone is saying that the accident occurred due to my fathers negligence it is a lie to cover up some drawbacks, said Soma,one of his three daughters,at the family home at Shyamnagar. Disturbed at fingers being pointed at their father,the daughters demanded a high level inquiry to get to the truth.

Railway authorities,including Railway Board Chairman Vivek Sahai,have described Dey as an A category driver,a distinction only 15 -20 per cent railway drivers have. However,the authorities have pointed that Dey and assistant driver Nirmal Chandra Mandal did not use the brake nor did they make any effort to apply the emergency brake to stop the Uttarbanga Express from ramming the Vananchal Express.

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The bodies of Dey and Mandal were found in a sitting position in the badly mangled drivers cabin.

Like Deys family,the family members of Mandal,a resident of Barasat,were still in a shock. Mandal is survived by wife Ratna,a seven-year-old son and a two-year-old daughter.

He was very regular at work and always told me that authorities trusted him. He did not do the work for money,he liked his job, Ratna said.