Ajay Kumar at 09:32, 12 August 2023

2023-08-12T09:32:26Z

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{{Short description|1856 train accident in India}}

{{Infobox rail accident
|name = 1956 Ariyalur train accident
|image =
|caption =
|date = 23 November 1956
|time =
|location = railwaybridge over the [[Cauvery]] river [[Ariyalur]]
|location-dist =
|location-dist-mi =
|location-dir =
|location-city = [[Ariyalur]], [[Tamil Nadu]]
|coordinates = 
|country = [[India]]
|line =
|operator =
|type = train plunges into the water
|cause = collapsing of a bridge due to torrential rain
|trains = 1
|passengers = 800
|deaths = 154-250<ref name=TG />
|injuries = >110<ref name=TG />
|damage = bridge<br>train with 13 carriages
|map =
|map_name =
|map_state =
}}
The '''1956 Ariyalur train accident''' was a train accident on 23 November 1956 in [[Ariyalur]], [[Tamil Nadu]], India, where a train fell into the [[Cauvery]] river killing over 150 passengers after a bridge collapsed as a result of damages by torrential rain.

It was at the time the worst train accident ever in independent India.<ref name=TNS /> and is still one of India’s deadliest train disasters.<ref name=TG />

==Event==
Due to torrential rain, in the night of 23 November 1956, pillars of a bridge that ran over the [[Cauvery]] river were heavily damaged by flooding at [[Ariyalur]], [[Tamil Nadu]], around two miles from [[Ariyalur railway station]].<ref name=NIE /><ref name=TG /> Half an hour after a train crossed the bridge, the bridge collapsed when Express train number 803 from Chennai to Tuticorin with 800 passengers tried to cross the bridge. The train with 13 carriages plunged into the Marudyar river.<ref name=TG /> The first seven carriages were fully submerged.<ref name=NIE>{{cite web|title=Six decades since Ariyalur train tragedy, residents ask for plaque|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2022/nov/23/six-decades-since-ariyalur-train-tragedyresidents-ask-for-plaque-2521160.html|work=[[The New Indian Express]]|author=P Thiruselvam|date=23 November 2022}}</ref><ref name=TNS>{{cite web|title=From 1956 Ariyalur train mishap to 2023 Odisha crash...A look at the deadliest railway accidents in India!
|url=https://www.thenewstuff.in/1956-ariyalur-train-mishap-2023-odisha-crasha-loot-deadliest-railway-accidents-india|work=The New Stuff|author=Alagu|date=3 June 2023}}</ref> Around 200 people were buried in the debris, many were never recovered.<ref name=TH>{{cite web|title=Nightmare in Ariyalur, a brave tale from 1956|url=https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/open-page/nightmare-in-ariyalur-a-brave-tale-from-1956/article5740973.ece|work=[[The Hindu]]|date=2 March 2014|author=Joyce Philomena Vernem}}</ref> Due to the darkness, passengers mistook the river in full flow for sand, and drowned after they jumped into it.<ref name=NIE />

During the day it was reported that around 250 people were killed. Two days later, ‘only’ 150 bodies were recovered. With the exact number being unknown as only the bodies that were found were counted, at least 154 people were killed<ref name=TG>{{cite web|title=India's 10 worst rail disasters before the latest tragedy|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/03/indias-10-worst-rail-disasters-before-the-latest-tragedy|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=3 June 2023}}</ref> and over 110 people were injured.<ref name=TH /><ref name=TG />

After the disaster, railway minister [[Lal Bahadur Shastri]] resigned on 7 December 1956 taking moral responsibility.<ref name=NIE />

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{1956 railway accidents}}

[[Category:Railway accidents and incidents in Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Railway accidents in 1956]]
[[Category:1956 disasters in India]]
[[Category:November 1956 events in Asia]]

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1956 Ariyalur train accident - Revision history

Ajay Kumar at 09:32, 12 August 2023