A batch of 31 sub-junior volleyball players from Karnataka who were stranded in Kolkata following the train crash in Balasore in Odisha, will fly to Bengaluru on Sunday.
Though they were not on board when the ill-fated trains collided on Friday evening, the players were supposed to return home by the same train later in the night.
D. Mahadev, coach of the players who are aged 16 and below, said that they were supposed to board the train on the night of June 2 but the accident led to the cancellation of the corresponding rake for the return journey.
“Parents of the players were anxious for their safe return at the earliest and were not keen on the train journey. So the former Hunsur MLA Manjunath spoke to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah who contacted me, and arranged for flight tickets through Minister Santosh Lad,” said Mr. Mahadev.
The boys had taken part in the sub-junior tournament, and their last match was on June 1. The team will return in two batches of 23 players and nine players each in two flights on Sunday morning, said Mr. Mahadev.
