Patna, Jul 13 (IANS): A major train accident was averted due to the alertness and swift action of a train driver in Bihar's Katihar district on Tuesday.

The Kolkata-Radhikapur Express train was returning to Kolkata. As it crossed a railway bridge on the Nagar river just before the Barsoi Junction, a youth riding a bike came on the same track.

An eyewitness said the youth was trying to cross the river through the rail bridge. At the same time, the Kolkata-Radhikapur Express came from the opposite direction. As the youth saw the train approaching, he left his bike on the tracks and jumped into the river to save his life.

The driver of the train immediately applied the emergency brakes. The train however rammed the bike which got entangled in its wheels. The train dragged the bike for some distance before it stopped in the middle of the bridge.

"As the driver of the train had applied the emergency brake, its speed had slowed down. If the train was moving at full speed there was a greater chance of it moving off-track and might have fallen into the river," said a railway official.

"The bike was removed from the wheel of the train after which it was allowed to move towards the Barsoi Junction," he added.