Jharkhand News : Latehar district witnessed a tragic incident on Monday night when an elephant calf died after being hit by a goods train on the Barkakana–Barwadih rail section. The accident occurred between Nindra and Mahua Milan railway stations near Kutritola, leading to disruption of train services for several hours.
According to information, a herd of elephants was crossing the railway track from the forest late at night when a goods train approached. The elephant calf was hit by the train and sustained serious injuries, later succumbing to them. Following the calf’s death, the herd gathered on the railway track, blocking train movement on the Barkakana–Barwadih section.
As a result, rail operations were completely halted on the stretch. After sustained efforts by railway staff and forest department officials, up-line train services were partially restored around midnight (12:00 a.m.). However, both up and down lines resumed normal operations only around 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, after the elephants moved back into the forest.
Railway and forest department officials rushed to the spot after receiving information about the incident. Managing the situation proved difficult due to the aggressive behavior of the elephant herd.
Station Superintendent Ranjit Kumar confirmed that train movement on both lines was fully restored by Tuesday morning. Ranger Nandkumar Mahto also confirmed the incident, stating that the elephant calf was critically injured after being hit by the goods train and later died. He added that the post-mortem of the elephant calf will be conducted today, after which the carcass will be buried as per protocol.
