The man hid in the trolley area between the wheels.
Railway staff carrying out a routine inspection of the rolling stock and undercarriage of a train at Jabalpur station in Madhya Pradesh were shocked on Friday to notice a stowaway underneath one of the coaches, hiding between the wheels.
Their shock only increased when they were told that the man had traveled 250 km (or more than four hours) this way, all the way from Itarsi.
Officials said that Wagon and Wagon Department employees noticed unusual movements under the AC-4 coach of the Pune-Danapur Express (Train No. 12149) and asked the loco pilot to stop the train. The man, who hid in the carriage area between the wheels, was then asked to come out and handed over to the Railway Protection Force (RPF).
During the initial interrogation, the man said that he could not afford a train ticket and therefore resorted to this mode of travel to reach Jabalpur. However, officials said his answers also indicated he may be mentally impaired.
The RPF in Jabalpur is conducting further investigations to verify the man's identity and understand the circumstances that led him to undertake such a risky journey.