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Four people have died and nine were injured, some of them critically, when two overcrowded suburban trains on the Central Railway (CR) network passed by each other on sharply-curved tracks near Mumbra railway station on Monday morning.

- Anamika Gharat and Shashank Rao

MUMBAI: Four people have died and nine were injured, some of them critically, when two overcrowded suburban trains on the Central Railway (CR) network passed by each other on sharply curved tracks near Mumbra railway station on Monday morning.

CR's chief public relations officer Swapnil Nila said eight people fell between Diva and Mumbra stations around 9.10am on Monday. "Emergency response teams, including ambulances and railway medical staff, were immediately dispatched to the site, and the injured passengers were swiftly transported to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital, Kalwa, and the Civil Hospital, Thane, for prompt medical attention. All possible medical assistance is being provided to the injured," he said.

According to officials, the incident occurred in a 100-metre stretch near Mumbra station, when two suburban CR trains on the fast lines—Kasara-CSMT and CSMT-Karjat—were cruising at 75 kmph on a curve and crossed each other. Trains on CR's fast lines do not halt at Mumbra.

While commuters posted videos on social media showing injured people lying on the tracks near Mumbra after falling off the trains, there is still no footage available showing how they fell.

"The trains involved were the CSMT-Karjat Down Fast local and the Kasara-CSMT Up Fast local. As the two trains passed each other at high speed, passengers hanging out of the coaches on footboards collided, causing several people to fall onto the tracks and nearby areas," a release from Thane railway police station said.