RPF constable's gun goes off in Kolkata metro station, 3 injured
Kolkata, June 8: Three persons including a child got injured after the rifle of a Railway Protection Force (RPF) constable went off during change of duty at the Dumdum Metro railway station premises here on Friday afternoon, police said.
Kolkata Metro General Manager Ajay Vijayvargiya has ordered a "high level inquiry" into the incident and promised stringent action against those found guilty, an official said.
The incident happened at around 1.45 p.m. near one of the ticket counters at the metro station when an RPF constable was handing over his rifle to another as his duty got over.
"The rifle of an RPF constable got accidentally dropped on the ground while changing hands inside the Dumdum Metro station premises. The bullet rebounded from the floor of the station complex. A woman and her son sustained splinter injuries in the incident," said Kolkata Metro CPRO Indrani Banerjee.
A metro employee also got hit in the process, she said.
According to an eye witnesses, the splinters of the bullet brushed the hand of Sonarpur resident Sangeeta Basu before hitting the leg of her nine-year-old son Saptarshi Basu, who were standing in a queue to buy tickets.
Following the incident, panic gripped the commuters as well as hundreds of passengers of adjoining Dumdum railway station.
The injured mother and son were rushed to the nearby RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
"None of the injuries were serious. They were released from the hospital after first aid," a metro official said.
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Flight services between Kolkata, Dubai resume partially
Kolkata (PTI): Flight services between Kolkata and Dubai resumed partially on Thursday, after a four-day suspension due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, officials said.
A flydubai aircraft from Dubai landed at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport here at 2:40 am with 130 passengers on board, marking the first arrival from the Middle East after services were halted for over 113 hours, they said.
The Boeing 737 Max aircraft was scheduled to arrive at 12:25 am, Kolkata airport officials said.
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The same aircraft departed for Dubai at 3:59 am with 55 passengers, they said.
The last flight to depart for the Middle East from Kolkata before the suspension was an Emirates aircraft to Dubai on February 28, the officials said.
International services between Kolkata and cities such as Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi were disrupted, after airlines temporarily suspended operations amid escalating tensions and airspace restrictions in parts of the Middle East, due to the conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran.
There is no clear indication about when all the Middle East routes will fully reopen, they said.
