One accident can drastically change a person’s life. It can result in an outburst of emotions or reduce a person to a mere statistic. With Sunday’s derailment of the Diva-Sawantwadi Passenger train near Roha, 21 people became statistics part of the data for the number of deaths caused due to rail accidents. But the question that everyone is asking is when will all this stop?

Over the past few days and months, there have been numerous incidents in which the railway administration has been found wanting when it comes to the maintenance of tracks, trains and other railway equipment. The demise of a young Ghatkopar lad after a train derailed near Titwala and the charred coaches of the Dehradun Express at Dahanu are still fresh in people’s minds.