A major train accident was averted in Moradabad district in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, thanks to the timely intervention by an alert plumber.

Sources informed that a plumber- Chandrasen Saini- spotted a crack on the railway track while he was on his way to "relieve himself".

It was the time for the Amritsar-Howrah parcel train, with two military compartments attached, to cross the track.

Without wasting a moment, Saini began running towards the direction of the train, waving a red cloth.

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The loco pilot when saw Saini approaching towards the train waving a red cloth, sense that something was wrong and he immediately applied the brakes.

The train halted just at the nick of time, averting a major train accident.

It may be mentioned here that the military compartments had a few Army personnel on board.

The parcel train with 24 coaches was moving from Amritsar to Howrah and was crossing Bhaisiya village under Katghar in Uttar Pradesh on the Delhi-Lucknow down railway line when Saini raised the alarm.

Later, speaking to the media, Saini said, "There was some kind of sparkle near the railway track when a train was passing through it."

"After the train passed, I went to take a closer look and found that there was a crack," he added.

"Thereafter, another train was approaching the track and I sensed that a train accident was possible due to the wide gap," he further said.

"I waved a red cloth at the loco pilot who saw it and immediately applied the brakes," Saini added.

Later, senior officials and the maintenance team rushed to the spot and fixed the glitch.

Tarun Prakash, Divisional Railway Manager of Moradabad, later informed that train movement on the concerned railway track was suspended for around three hours.

"Maintenance work was carried out after which the train moved on," Prakash informed.

It may be mentioned here that similar train accidents have occurred in the area in the past as well.

The railway department thanked Saini for his alertness and averting the train accident.