Rail engine knocks down wild elephant

 

COOCH BEHAR, Nov. 9: State forest minister Mr Ananta Roy instructed forest officials to conduct a probe and file a detailed report to him over the accident in which a wild elephant was severely injured near Rajabhatkhawa railway station in Dooars this morning. He held railway authorities responsible for the incident.

 

An Alipurduar Junction bound rail engine pushed a full-grown wild elephant (30) from behind at about 3-30 a.m. today. The engine was coming from Siliguri. It was about to enter Rajabhatkhawa station when the incident occurred. The elephant with radio-collar on its neck was reportedly crossing the track when the engine knocked it from behind. The animal fell down beside the track. It was found that its both the backside legs received injury.

 

The driver and the cabin guard immediately conveyed the matter to the stationmaster. The stationmaster informed the forest officials about the incident. A team of forest officials rushed to the spot and examining the injured pachyderm they observed that the animal lost its control over the backside legs. Dr Praloy Mandal, a veterinary surgeon attached with Cooch Behar forest division started treating the injured elephant. Saline and injections were administered and medical treatment is going on under supervision of Dr Mandal.

 

Mr LG Lepcha, field Director of Buxa Tiger Reserve and Mr Partha Saarathi Mandal, assistant divisional railway manager, Alipurduar and other senior officials too visited the spot and inquired about the incident. BTR field director Mr Lepcha hoped that the elephant might be cured soon. He said that an effort is under process to stop such accidents in this region. ADRM Mr Mandal claimed that the engine was within the speed limit. The driver conveyed the incident immediately to the persons concerned, he claimed.

 

When contacted, state forest minister Mr Ananta Roy said they would lodge an FIR against the railway authority over the incident. "I will report the incident to the chief minister", he said. He alleged that the railway authority failed to implement the decision that was adopted in the recent meeting to reduce elephant deaths. "We requested them several times but they are not interested in lowering of speed along the route gone through Dooars", he said.

 

Mr Roy believes conversion of railway track from metre-gauge to broad-gauge brought the trouble. The minister alleged that they requested the railway authority to discontinue plying of trains from evening to dawn inside the forests but no one paid any heed to it. Forest officials were asked to submit a detailed report over today's incident. Examining that report forest department will plan its next steps, the minister said.

 

On the otherhand, NF Railway sources denied any violation of stipulated speed limit in the marked elephant zones. The incident occurred outside of such zones and the speed of the engine was within the limit, railway officials claimed. []

 

PHOTO : The injured wild elephant that was knocked down by an railway engine near Rajabhatkhawa railway station in Dooars of Jalpaiguri district on Friday morning is being cared by medical personnel and forest department officials.