Hit by a speeding train, four elephants die in India

Hit by a speeding train, four elephants die in India

Story by Sumesh Rajan
Mumbai: April 17, 2018

Four elephants including one tusker were killed after being run over by a speeding train in India’s eastern state of Odisha. The incident took place in the wee hours of April 16 in Jharsuguda district of the state.

The 12810 Howrah-Mumbai Mail passing through Bagdihi forest range rammed into the pachyderms as they were trying to negotiate their way across track near an unmanned level crossing near Telidihi village at around 3.30 am.

The herd could have come from Bamra wildlife division, a part of the Sambalpur elephant reserve, around 20 km away, say forest department officials.

“All the four elephants were killed in the impact of collision”, said Jharsuguda Divisional Forest Officer Sushant Kumar.

According to norms, locomotive drivers must limit the speed of trains to 30 kilometers per hour while passing through elephant corridors and constantly blow horns to alert the jumbos crossing railway tracks.

“Although there was no elephant movement in the area for the past three to four months, the railway authorities were duly informed to reduce train speed in that section. Besides, they were also requested to follow guidelines including making continuous hooting along the stretch,” added Kumar.

Three earth moving machines/cranes were deployed to clear the carcasses from the tracks.

On hearing about the death of the elephants a large number of people from nearby villages gathered at the spot and offered prayers and floral tributes as elephants are worshipped as a sacred animal by the Hindus who see them as the living incarnation of one of their most important gods -- Ganesh, the elephant-headed deity.