For passengers traveling aboard the Kolkata-Sairang Express, the morning was settling into the familiar rhythm of long-distance rail travel through Assam. Train No. 13125 had been making its journey across the Northeast Frontier Railway network, carrying travelers bound across state borders. But just before seven in the morning, routine gave way to sudden chaos as the train approached Digaru railway station near Guwahati.
At approximately 6:54 AM, what should have been an uneventful maneuver into a secondary track turned precarious. As the train made its approach, the locomotive along with five to six coaches abruptly departed the rails. The sudden violent disruption tore through the morning quiet, alerting nearby villagers and shaking those aboard awake in an instant.
The crucial moment arrived as the express was routed onto a secondary loop line—a siding track designed to let trains pull aside, decelerate, or clear the main corridor. Entering such a line requires precise speed management. In this instance, the loco pilot apparently failed to control the speed of the train while decelerating into the loop line. As the train pushed forward without slowing sufficiently, momentum overtook track alignment, sending the engine and six trailing coaches jumping the steel rails.
The injuries that did occur were minor scrapes, treated directly on-site by responding personnel.
The sound of the disaster carried far beyond the station platform. "I heard a deafening screech followed by a loud thud, and immediately rushed to the spot," a local witness recalled. "When I arrived, I saw the derailed coaches leaning heavily to the side."
Despite the alarming scene and the sight of derailed coaches leaning at sharp angles off the ballast, disaster did not translate into tragedy. All passengers on board remained miraculously safe, escaping the mangled coaches with only a handful of minor, non-life-threatening scrapes. The injuries that did occur were minor scrapes, treated directly on-site by responding personnel.
Emergency response teams mobilized quickly to contain the situation at the station. Official confirmation followed shortly thereafter, establishing the scale of the physical derailment alongside the fortunate lack of loss of life. "Six coaches of the Kolkata-Sairang Express have derailed at Digaru railway station at around 6:54 AM today. So far, no casualties have been reported," stated Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, underscoring the initial assessment of the accident.
#InPhotos | The Kolkata-Sairang Express derailment near Digaru railway station in Assam's Kamrup (Metropolitan) district on Wednesday left passengers shaken, with a crew member describing how the train continued travelling for nearly a kilometre after going off the tracks. Swipe 👈to check it out! More details: https://t.co/WREInSKERS
With multiple carriages off the tracks and an active line disrupted near Guwahati, senior administrative machinery began moving. A press release confirmed the immediate mobilization: "NFR General Manager Vivek Khare, along with other senior officials, have proceeded to the site." The presence of leadership on the ground at Digaru underscored the operational urgency of stabilizing the train, clearing the secondary line, and assessing track conditions.
The incident has brought focus to operations on the Northeast Frontier Railway, particularly the delicate operational transitions trains make between high-speed main routes and secondary loops. Against the backdrop of broader railway administration and governance—where Prime Minister Modi announced a new policy—the operational challenge of handling heavy passenger expresses across changing track profiles remains an exacting discipline.
At Digaru, the immediate priority shifted to track restoration and safety verifications. The timeline of the event—rooted on June 14, 2023, with subsequent records on November 11, 2026 affirming that all passengers remained safe with no injuries—leaves behind an account defined both by mechanical failure and immense relief. While questions remain regarding how deceleration faltered on the approach to the siding, the prompt response and the survival of every passenger on board turned what could have been a catastrophe into a fortunate escape.