Anantpur : At least five persons were killed and another 25 were injured early on Monday when the Bangalore-Nanded Express train collided with lorry which was crossing the railway track in Anantpur, Andhra Pradesh.
The collision resulted in the derailment of four coaches, Anil Saxena, PRO of the Railways, told ANI.
Preliminary reports confirmed that Karnataka MLA Venkatesh Nayak was among the five people killed.
Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu is monitoring the situation closely, Saxena told ANI.
Saxena said that the helpline numbers at the accident spot are 09701374062,09493548005,09448090399 and 00873763945549, while the helpline numbers at the Bangalore Railway Station are 08022354108,0731666751 and  08022156553
Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Monday said that the government will announce an ex gratia payment for those injured and to the relatives of the five persons killed in this morning’s Bangalore-Nanded Express-lorry accident in Anantpur, Andhra Pradesh.
Prabhu’s announcement came soon after Anil Saxena, PRO of the Railways informed that some trains on the South Central and South Western Railway lines have been diverted because of the railway accident.