Twenty people have lost their lives in a train incident at a remote station in the Indian state of Bihar, officials say

Twenty people have lost their lives in a train incident at a remote station in the Indian state of Bihar, officials say.

The incident happened during the early hours of Monday, when an express train ran over pilgrims crossing railroad tracks at the station in the small town of Dhamara Ghat, said lawmaker Dinesh Chandra Yadav.

Several others have also been injured.

The pilgrims were returning from morning prayers at the Katyayani temple near Dhamara Ghat when the accident occurred.

The people who were angered by the mishap pulled out the train driver and its guard, beating them.

Yadav confirmed the death of the driver, but Arunendra Kumar, a top railway official, said he was in hospital in a critical condition.

The angry people also set fire to some coaches of the Rajya Rani Express and smashed the window panes of two other trains in the station.

In 2012, Indian officials said that more than 1,200 people had died in train accidents in the country over the past five years.