Mother elephant, calf die after being hit by Rajdhani Express in Assam

A mother elephant and her calf have died after being hit by a Delhi-bound Rajdhani Express in Assam's Jorhat district, reports said.

The accident happened when a herd of elephants were crossing the railway tracks on Sunday night near Kharikatia railway station in Jorhat district, officials said.


The female elephant was 22 years old and the calf was 10 months old.

Another wild elephant that sustained injuries in the incident took shelter in a nearby tea garden and medical personnel were trying to tranquilise the animal to provide necessary treatment.

Forest officials claimed that the accident happened despite them asking railway officers to slow down the trains in that area.

"The forest department had alerted railway officials about the movement of wild elephants and requested them to ensure that trains slowed down while passing the area. But they did not do that," Jorhat district forest officer Biken Pegu told ANI.

This is the third instance of wild elephant death in Assam in recent times. On Wednesday, an adult wild elephant died after coming in contact with a live electrical wire in the Sanfan forest range in Kokrajhar district, after a herd of wild elephants ventured outside the forest in search of food. Another wild elephant was electrocuted in the Kamrup district of Assam recently.