CHANDIGARH: India's International hockey player, drag flicker Sandeep Singh (21) was Tuesday injured in an accidental fire from revolver of Railway Protection Force (RPF) Jawan. He has been admitted in PGI Chandigarh. he was travelling by Kalka-New Delhi Shatabdi Express to join the team in Delhi for next month's World Cup in Germany.

Sandeep was hit by the bullet in the right hip and was rushed to a hospital in Kurekshetra from where he was brought to PGI here. He was sitting next to RPF Jawan Mohar Singh when revolver wento off accidentally.

The Indian hockey team was to leave on Thursday for Hockey World cup in Monchengladbach, Germany, scheduled from September 6.

GRP Inespector General of Police R K Vaccher said the incident occured just one station before Kurekshetra. Sandeep was travelling with another player Rajpal Singh.Sandeep was stated to be out of danger and underwent a CT scan.

Former India international Pargat Singh, present at the PGI, said Sandeep was fully conscious and the bleeding had stopped.

Rajpal, who was sitting to Sandeep's left, told reporters in PGI that suddenly there was a loud noise as the super fast train was proceeding to the national capital.

Immediately after that (loud noise) Sandeep fell down on his seat in the Air-conditioned Chair Car compartment, Rajpal said adding that Sandeep started crying saying that something had hit him.

ASI Mohar Singh, who was seated behind the two hockey players, also looked shocked saying "Goli Chal Gayee" (Shot has been fired), the Chandigarh player said describing the scene on the train.

Rajpal said that he immediately took out a towel and wrapped it around Sandeep, who was bleeding.

Following the incident the Shatabdi Express was detained fo 75 minutes at Kurukshetra and the player taken to a civil hospital there.

"It was a purely accidental fire from the service weapon of the ASI of the RPF. Sandeep was not shot at. The Haryana police is looking at it," police said.

Asked whether any action would be taken against the RPF jawan, he said "Atleast for mismanagement of the weapon. It's not that he fired at (Sandeep).

Orthopaedic surgeon Dr Mandeep Singh Dhillon, who was to operate upon Singh, confirmed that the player was "out of danger".

"He has sustained minor injury in the lower back around the spine region. We will perform operation to take out the bullet. The injury as it appears now looks minor," he said.

In Delhi Indian Hockey Fedration (IHF) president K.P.S. Gill said that "We are trying to muster up some substitute players and collect them in Delhi, those arrangements have been done. We are trying to get Raghunath, who has been playing very well in Sri Lanka at the SA Games,". Gill mentioned the names of Jugraj Singh and under-19 national team captain Vikramjit Singh as Sandeep's possible replacement.

Indian captain Dilip Tirkey said that it was bad news for the country as they had no other drag flicker of Sandeep's ability.