West Bengal: Pregnant elephant dies as goods train knocks down pachyderm in Chapramari Sanctuary

Sources in the railway said the accident happened when the wild jumbo was crossing the railway line to go to the other side of the sanctuary.

Jalpaiguri:A pregnant elephant died after being knocked down by a speeding goods train in the Chapramari Sanctuary near Pillar Number 68 of the railway track in West Bengal's Doars late on Wednesday night. The elephant was hit by Chalsa-bound goods train when it was passing through the sanctuary corridor. The freight train was coming from the Nagrakata side under the Malbazar subdivision of the Jalpaiguri district.

The accident was so severe that the calf the mother elephant was carrying in her womb came out when the speeding goods train pierced through the pachyderm's belly. The elephant along with the unborn calf died on the spot. The wildlife experts and enthusiasts were in a state of shock when they heard the knocking down of the elephant by a speeding goods train.

Sources in the railway said the accident happened when the wild jumbo was crossing the railway line to go to the other side of the sanctuary. Officials from the Gorumara Wildlife Department and Alipurduar Railway Division rushed to the spot after receiving the news of the elephant's death.

The carcasses of the elephant and its baby were removed from the railway tracks by the forest department staffers. The railway line was opened for the movement of goods trains on Thursday morning. Following the accident, the train movement on the Dooars section of the rail route between Alipurduar to Siliguri came to a grinding halt for several hours.

According to the Gorumara Wildlife Department, the carcasses of the mother elephant and its calf will be cremated after an autopsy. North Bengal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) Rajendra Zakhar said that the elephant died after being hit by a goods train. "The elephant was pregnant. The baby would have taken birth in a day's time. We will discuss the matter with the railways. The last such incident took place in September and then this one happened. We are trying to ascertain what was the speed of goods train when it hit the elephant."