We are strictly monitoring the railway tracks, tunnels: Goa Police

The police is keeping a strict vigil and monitoring the railway tracks and tunnels so that migrant labourers do not walk on tracks in a bid to get back to their homes, said Shobit Saxena, Superintendent of Police Special Branch.

"We have Konkan Railway police. We have formed a team. They are monitoring the tunnels and tracks along with railway officials. The police officials are keeping check, and they have been provided with torches. They are continuously monitoring the tracks to ensure no one is on them," said Saxena.

He added that the migrant labourers have been taken into confidence that they would gradually be taken to their home states.

"We have taken our migrant population in confidence and told them that one by one in a staggered manner, they can go home. There is no-one walking on tracks as of now, and hopefully, we will never have such an incident as of now," Shobit Saxena told .

In Maharashtra, a mishap occurred on Friday in the Nanded Division of South Central Railway in Karmad police station area of the Aurangabad district when as many as 16 migrant labourers were killed and five others injured when a freight train ran over them.

As per Railways officials, the migrant labourers hailed from Madhya Pradesh and were walking home from Maharashtra's Jalna and after walking for about 36 km, they had stopped to take rest when they fell asleep.

( With inputs from ANI )