Guwahati: At least seven wild elephants were killed, and one was left injured, after the DN-Sairang–New Delhi Rajdhani Express collided with a herd in the Kampur area of Assam’s Hojai district early Saturday. Five coaches were derailed along with the engine but no casualties have been reported, officials said.
“Seven elephants — three adults and four calves — were killed in the accident while one calf sustained injuries. We are conducting postmortem of all the carcasses,” Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Nagaon forest division Suhas Kadam said.
Helpline numbers were activated at Guwahati railway station to assist passengers and relatives. The helpline numbers are 0361-2731621, 0361-2731622 and 0361-2731623.
The accident took place at around 2.17 a.m. on December 20 in the Jamunamukh-Kampur section under the Lumding Division of Northeast Frontier Railway. Train number 20507 DN Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express struck elephants on the track, leading to the derailment of the locomotive and five coaches.
The site of the incident is located around 126 kilometres from Guwahati. Railway authorities said the area is not marked as a designated elephant corridor.
Accident Relief Trains and senior officials from the Lumding divisional headquarters were rushed to the site soon after the derailment. Senior railway officers, including the General Manager of Northeast Frontier Railway and the Divisional Railway Manager of Lumding, also reached the location to oversee rescue and restoration work.
Meanwhile, trains scheduled to pass through the affected section are being diverted through the UP line. Restoration work is currently underway, and railway officials said normal train movement will be restored after safety checks are completed.
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