An elephant was killed in the early hours of Sunday after being hit by a train in Dhupguri in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. This is the first incident of a wild elephant's death in a train collision in the Dhupguri area in recent times.
While one adult elephant died on the spot, a calf was found lying injured beside the railway tracks. Efforts were underway to rescue the injured calf.
The incident took place near the 73/7 railway pillar. It is suspected that the elephants were trying to cross the railway tracks when the collision occurred. Forest department officials rushed to the spot after receiving the information. The incident is believed to have occurred around 3:45 am.
Suvendu Roy, a railway traffic inspector, said, "We received information about the incident around 4:30 in the morning. One elephant has died and one has been injured. Forest officers have also been called. The area where the incident occurred does not come under an elephant corridor, so there is no speed restriction for trains passing through this area."
Subarata Sharma, a local resident who visited the spot, said, "Many eyewitnesses told me there were at least five elephants. They were trying to cross the railway track when the accident took place. One died on the spot, another sustained injuries. The rest of the herd fled."
(With inputs from Sheikh Roni from Jalpaiguri)
