KOLKATA - India’s worst train crash in more than two decades ought to intensify the focus on boosting safety in its railways, experts have said, even as the government goes ahead with an ambitious 2.4 trillion rupee (S$39.3 billion) programme to overhaul the vast rail network with semi-high-speed trains and upgraded stations.

“This incident should serve as a reminder to the various levels of railway management that safety has to remain in focus even while implementing modernisation schemes,” said Mr Subodh Jain, a former member of the Railway Board who handled engineering-related projects for Indian Railways.