A newly-wed couple and the bride’s mother died in the fire that engulfed the Tamil Nadu Express on Monday.
K. Venkataramana, a software engineer, had boarded the train with wife Pallavi and mother-in-law Nagarani. On hearing news of the fire, his brother-in-law D. Ananda Rao went to Vijayawada railway station on Monday and started enquiring about the family. The helpline authorities gave the telephone numbers of the hospital in Nellore where the injured were taken and told him to make his own enquiries.
Mr Rao was not in a position to do so, so this reporter took him to the additional DRM S. Subba Rao, who is monitoring the train mishap from the control room. Mr Subba Rao directed that arrangements be made to provide transport to Nellore. Venkataramana was the son of K. Yellamanda and Kruparam. He had married five months ago and had just visited his village along with his wife.
More fortunate were six Kuchipudi dancers from Kuchipudi village in Krishna district who boarded the train at Vijayawada to attend the funeral of Kuchipudi maestro Vempati Chinna Satyam, who passed away in Chennai. They tried to get berths in S11 coach, but fortunately for them, it was full. The six men — Natyacharyulu Chinta Rammurthy, Y. Srinivas, Ch Ravi Balakrishna, P. Bala Ramakrishna, Ch.V. Bhagat and Chinta Naga Satyanrayana Murthy — then boarded a general compartment.