Government data shows that on average, 20 elephants die due to train collisions in India every year.
Three elephants were killed in an accident involving a parcel train in the forest of Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal today. The incident happened early in the morning around 7 am, near Shikhari Gate between Rajabhatkhawa and Kalchini railway stations. One baby and two adult elephants were hit by a parcel train leading to their deaths.
Video footage showed one of the three elephants under a train with multiple cut marks on its body. The tragic Incident that happened in West Rajabhatkhawa range of the tiger reserve in Alipurduar district is one of many, fairly common incidents involving the deaths of elephants due to train collisions in India.
Earlier this year, a pregnant elephant was hit by a goods train while she was trying to cross a railway track inside the Chapramari Reserve Forest in Alipurduar district of West Bengal.
Government data shows that on average, 20 elephants die due to train collisions in India every year. Home to around 2 per cent of the country's elephant population, railway accidents remain one of the causes of unnatural elephant deaths in West Bengal and remain an issue the government has rigorously been trying to prevent.