Elephant Critically Injured by Speeding Train in Tripura Succumbs to Injuries

The elephant was struck by a local train travelling from Agartala to Dharmanagar in the Shalbagan area, under the Teliamura Forest Division.

A 35-year-old wild elephant named Tumor, critically injured after being hit by a speeding train in Tripura’s Khowai district succumbed to its injuries late Monday night.

The death of the elephant was confirmed by Akshay Balu Bhorde, District Forest Officer (DFO) of Tripura Forest Department today.

The incident occurred on Saturday night when the elephant was struck by a local train travelling from Agartala to Dharmanagar in the Shalbagan area, under the Teliamura Forest Division. The impact left the elephant with fractured hind legs, rendering it immobile.

Veterinary doctors from the state animal hospital worked tirelessly to stabilize the animal, providing food and water, but its condition continued to worsen.

An expert team from Jamnagar, Gujarat, had been scheduled to airlift the elephant for advanced treatment, but Tumor died on Monday before further assistance could arrive.

Speaking to the media, District Forest Officer (DFO) Akshay Balu Bhorde said, “After the accident on Saturday, we did everything possible to treat the elephant, using all available resources. We also contacted expert agencies, including Vantara based in Jamnagar, Gujarat requesting their assistance, but unfortunately, the elephant passed away before further help could arrive.”

A team of 3 veterinary doctors, accompanied by forest and wildlife officials, conducted a postmortem examination and after the procedure, the elephant’s last rites were performed, and it was buried with due respect.

Local residents, many of whom have faced property damage and crop losses due to frequent elephant encounters, expressed sorrow over the elephant’s death. Villagers gathered near the site to mourn the loss, while also calling for better measures to prevent human-elephant conflicts and ensure the safety of the animals.

Meanwhile, the Tripura Forest Department has filed a complaint with the Government Railway Police in Teliamura and lodged an FIR with the Northeast Frontier Railway’s Divisional Manager in Lumding accusing railway authorities of negligence, stating that the train was travelling at 50 kilometres per hour, well above the 20 kilometres per hour limit set for designated elephant corridors in the region.

Forest officials condemned the violation of safety protocols, emphasizing that the tragedy could have been avoided if the train had adhered to the speed limit.

Notably, this is the second such case in the region this year. In February, another elephant was killed by a train in the same corridor.

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