Speeding train knocks down elephant, injures another

A male adult elephant was run over and killed and another was injured by a running train in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal, forest department officials said on Monday.

The Dhubri-New Jalpaiguri Intercity Express hit the pachyderms at around 8.30 pm on Sunday when the train was passing through an elephant corridor.

While one elephant died on the spot, the injured one was found this morning some distance away from the spot which falls between Reti and Moraghat forests, the officials said.

The carcass has been sent for post-mortem examination and the injured elephant is being treated.

Train driver Prakash Kumar said he noticed the elephants only after coming close to them and applied emergency brake but it was too late.

Wildlife Warden Seema Chowdhury said it is unfortunate that the drivers never run trains in a low speed in forests as has been decided in meetings with the railway authorities.

It is the same area where six elephants were mowed down by a speeding train in 2013.