Local police said 21 had died while railway officials put the toll at 13 from the early morning crash on tracks outside the town of Mathura, 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of Agra in northern India.
Rescuers, working with mechanical cutters amid a huge crowd of onlookers, battled to free people trapped in a badly mangled carriage that bore the brunt of the collision.
The engine of one train had rammed inside the last carriage of a train in front, reserved for the disabled and luggage. Bloodied bodies and people were pulled from the wreckage before being ferried to local hospitals.
"The number of dead from today's accident is 21," a spokesman for local police superintendent B.D. Polson told AFP, adding that 20 were injured in the crash at 5:30 am local time (0000 GMT) that involved two express trains.
Local railway manager Rajendra Dutt Tripathi said 13 were dead and 22 injured. Read More


October 22, 2009
Jubel Thomas Joy