A tragic incident occurred early on Saturday when a high-speed passenger train collided with a herd of elephants in Assam, India, resulting in the deaths of seven wild Asiatic elephants and injuring a calf. The accident took place as the herd was crossing the railway tracks in a forested area approximately 78 miles southeast of Assam’s capital, Guwahati.
The train driver, upon spotting the herd of around 100 elephants, activated the emergency brakes. Despite these efforts, the train struck several elephants, as confirmed by Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, a spokesman for Indian Railways. The impact caused five train coaches and the engine to derail; fortunately, no human casualties were reported. Veterinarians performed autopsies on the deceased elephants, with plans to bury them later that day.
Indian Railways indicated that the location of the incident is not a designated elephant corridor, although railway tracks in the region are known to be frequented by elephants. Trains operating in India’s 150 wildlife corridors are mandated to reduce speed to mitigate the risk of collisions. The Rajdhani Express was traveling from Sairang in Mizoram, near the Myanmar border, to the national capital, New Delhi, carrying approximately 650 passengers at the time of the accident.
After the collision, the unaffected coaches were detached, allowing the train to continue its journey to New Delhi. Passengers from the derailed coaches were transferred to another train heading to Guwahati.
Accidents involving speeding trains and wild elephants are not uncommon in Assam, which is home to an estimated 7,000 wild Asiatic elephants, one of the highest concentrations of these animals in India. Since 2020, at least a dozen elephants have lost their lives in similar incidents involving trains. According to Indian government data, an average of 20 elephants are killed in train accidents each year in the country, primarily when they cross railway lines that run through their natural habitats.
The rising number of elephant fatalities has prompted initiatives aimed at addressing this issue. Recently, an elephant hospital was opened in Mathura, and the southern state of Tamil Nadu has introduced an artificial intelligence and machine learning-enabled surveillance system designed to help prevent elephant deaths on railways.
As the harvesting season approaches, wild elephants often wander into human habitations, increasing the likelihood of such unfortunate encounters. The need for effective wildlife management has never been more pressing to ensure the safety of both elephants and railway operations in India.
