A major mishap was averted on Sunday when two trains from opposite directions came on the same tracks at Sankrail station in the Howrah-Kharagpur section of the South Eastern Railway.

The incident took place at 3.20 pm when Howrah-bound 8046 Down East Coast Express and P-35 UP Panskura local came on the same tracks near the station causing panic among the passengers.

According to South Eastern Railway, the two trains were to pass through two different lines, and accordingly signal was given at the station. But the motorman of the local train overshoot the signal and after realising the mistake, he stopped the train immediately and pulled it back, said officials of SE Railway.

The locals said the two trains came close as nearly 200-300 metres but SE Railway officilas maintained they were 700-800 metres apart. As per the arrangement, the local train was supposed to stop at home signal before entering the station. Meanwhile, the East Coast Express would change tracks and pass from the down line. After the express train had crossed, the local train would have gone through the middle line. Even though the home signal was red, Panskura local overshoot it before realising the mistake.

The SE Railway said that the three lines on the middle line has a reversible signalling system where trains coming from both the directions could pass through. But added that it was not an issue. “It is a regular practice, which the trains were supposed to follow and there was nothing wrong in this,” said a railway official.

“Primafacie, it appeares to be a case of overshooting of signal by the motorman of Panskura local,” said Soumitra Majumdar, Chief PRO, SE Railway.

Angry passengers of the local train, later, ransacked the station. Passengers complained of negligence on the part of railway authorities and train services were disrupted till late evening.