Forest department treats train-hit elephant fighting for life near Madukkarai
Coimbatore: The elephant which was hit by a train in the early morning, is fighting for his life and undergoing intensive treatment by the forest department. Chinnampathy, near Madukkarai in Coimbatore district, has tribal villages in Navakkarai. The elephants here usually come to drink water from the nearby Walayar river. The elephants cross the railway tracks to quench their thirst.
At around 1.30 am today, a herd of elephants came to drink water from the river. At the time the train collided with a 15-year-old male elephant.
The elephant lay with severe injuries on the head and hips. After the loco pilot informed the forest department about this, the forest department led by Madukkarai forest ranger Srinivasan led by District Forest Officer Venkatesh went to the spot and investigated the elephant's condition.
The veterinary team was informed and the veterinarians who came to the spot are treating the injured elephant. An investigation by the Forest Department has revealed that an elephant was injured when a Thiruvananthapuram-Chennai Express train from Kerala collided with it. Forest officials are advising that the injured elephant be taken to another place for treatment.
Trains coming from Kerala to Tamil Nadu and trains going from Tamil Nadu to Kerala are constantly being instructed to go slowly through the jungle. But the loco pilots continue to speed through the jungle without noticing it and thus hurting and hitting elephants. Animal welfare activists have urged the forest department to inform the railway authorities about this and take action to slow down the trains. The incidents where elephant are being killed after being hit by a train has saddened the people of the area