The presence of mind of a class-I student apparently saved lives of hundreds of railway passengers when he detected a crack on the tracks and informed his mother who along with the boy waved a piece of cloth to flag down the local train which was about to pass by.
According to eyewitnesses, Subhankar Biswas, a standard-I student, was on way to Shahpur primary school when he detected the two-inch crack in between Ambika Kalna station and Guptipara station.
He ran home and informed his mother about it after which the mother-son duo rushed to the spot and waved a piece of cloth to flag down the local train, which was about to pass by, they said.
The driver stopped the train and the guard informed the authorities concerned after which repairs were done. The train resumed its journey after about an hour, officials said.
Eastern Railway officials confirmed the unscheduled halt and repair of the cracked track but could not say whether the train had been flagged down by the school boy and his mother.