RANCHI: In another tragic incident of wildlife being hit by trains, a baby elephant was critically injured after being struck by a freight train late Monday night between Amilan and Nidra on the Barkakana–Barwadih railway section and later died from its injuries.
The accident took place near Putri Tola village under Chandwa police station limits and led to major disruption of rail traffic on the route. The elephant herd gathered on the tracks after the incident and refused to move, stopping train operations for more than four hours. The situation began around 7:30 pm and continued until midnight, as forest department teams tried to drive the animals away using torches, but the herd stayed on the line for a long time. The tracks were finally cleared at about 12:00 am, and train movement on the up line resumed at 12:20 am.
Several trains remained stranded at different stations due to the elephants on the tracks. One train was halted at Rai station while another remained stuck at Tori station for over four hours. The herd, angered by the incident, stayed near the railway line throughout the night before retreating into the forest in the morning.
According to Forest Ranger Nandkumar Mahato, a baby elephant died after being hit by a freight train. “The herd of elephants remained gathered on the railway track until late in the night. However, in the morning, all the elephants retreated to the forest,” said the Ranger.
The deceased baby elephant will be buried after the post-mortem, he added. The Ranger said the accident happened when a herd was crossing the railway line near the forest close to Kutritola village, where the freight train struck the calf, leaving it seriously injured before it later succumbed.