4 killed, many injured as train derails in India's Bihar

NEW DELHI, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- At least four people were killed and many others injured after 21 coaches of a passenger train derailed in the eastern Indian state of Bihar, officials said Thursday.

The accident took place Wednesday night at the Raghunathpur railway station in the Buxar district about 96 km west of Patna, the capital city of Bihar.

Local media reports quoting officials said over 80 people were injured in the accident.

The train had started from Delhi and was on its way to Guwahati in Assam.

Officials said the cause of the derailment was not immediately known.

"Deepest condolences for the irreparable loss. Will find the root cause of derailment," federal railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said. "Evacuation and rescue complete. All coaches checked."

India's premier investigating agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation, is carrying out a probe into the deadly accident.

In June this year, 295 passengers were killed in the worst train accident in India's recent history in Odisha. The impact of the collision was so severe that compartments of the trains climbed atop each other causing deaths and injuries to passengers.