Minister for Railways Azam Swati said Monday that rescue work was underway at the site of the train crash as the injured had been shifted to nearby hospitals, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Addressing a press conference, he said Pakistan Army jawans, Rangers personnel, Pakistan Railways (PR) employees, Rescue 1122, district administration and personnel of Sindh police were all busy in the rescue and relief operation.

Swati told the media that the passengers trapped in bogies were being freed with the help of machinery while cranes were being used to remove the debris from the track.

The railway minister assured that steps would be taken to prevent such incidents from happening again.

He further said that jets of the Pakistan Air Force were also ready to assist in relief activities.

Meanwhile, the spokesman for PR has informed that the death toll in the train crash now stands at 32 while close to 80 passengers are reportedly injured.

Giving a breakup of the number of dead and injured shifted to different hospitals of the area, the spokesman said that 20 dead bodies and 60 injured passengers were currently admitted to Taluqa Hospital Obaro, while four bodies and two injured passengers were shifted to District Hospital, Ghotki.

Similarly, he added, there were eight bodies and 12 injured at a hospital in Mirpur Mathelo while the information was being collected from Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan.

The spokesman said that food items, bottles of water and juices were being distributed among the passengers present at the site of train crash.

He said that PR was trying to look after its passengers and their family members in this calamity as much as possible.

He informed that help centres had been set up at Rawalpindi, Sukkur, Faisalabad and Karachi to facilitate the passengers.