Train makes timely stop to save elephant crossing tracks in eastern India
by Sudipto MaityA train’s timely brake helped save the life of a wild elephant in eastern India’s West Bengal.
The pachyderm was spotted crossing the railway track between Gulma and Sivok in Darjeeling district on the evening of May 11.
The elephant had ventured from the nearby forest and wandered near the tracks as the locomotive neared. The train was progressing at good speed at that time, but the moment the pilot and assistant pilot noticed the presence of the pachyderm, they pulled the brake of the 15767 Siliguri- Alipurduar Intercity Express, preventing an untoward incident.
The Locomotive Pilot and Assistant Locomotive Pilot have been identified as RR Kumar and S Kundu respectively.
The elephant crossed the railway track peacefully, unaware of the train’s stoppage in movement.
Speaking to Newslions, Dilip Kumar Singh, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), Alipurduar, said the two pilots would be rewarded.
“We are using advanced technology to prevent any man-animal conflict and mitigate accidents. We are going to upgrade our system in the near future and make it accessible to everyone in the system, from the pilots to gateman, to make tracking easier,” Singh said.
“We have been able to successfully manage the system with zero man-animal conflict in the last three years,” the senior official added.