In a tragic incident early Saturday, a high-speed passenger train struck a herd of elephants in northeastern India, resulting in the deaths of seven elephants and injuring a calf.
The Rajdhani Express, carrying approximately 650 passengers, was traversing Assam when the train’s driver noticed a group of around 100 wild Asiatic elephants on the tracks and immediately activated the emergency brakes.
Despite the driver’s swift response, the train unfortunately collided with some of these endangered elephants, according to a report by The Associated Press.
Passengers aboard observed as the carcass of one of the elephants was removed from the tracks near Changjurai village, located east of Guwahati, India, on Saturday. The scene highlighted the devastation of the accident. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)
The collision led to the derailment of the train’s engine and five of its coaches.
Fortunately, none of the passengers, who were traveling from Sairang in Mizoram state to New Delhi, sustained any injuries in the incident, as reported by AP.
“We delinked the coaches which were not derailed, and the train resumed its journey for New Delhi,” Indian Railways spokesman Kapinjal Kishore Sharma told AP. “Around 200 passengers who were in the five derailed coaches have been moved to Guwahati in a different train.”
Railway staff, workers, and police are present as they restore train service after a herd was struck by the Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Hojai District, Assam, Saturday. (Anuwar Hazarika/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Veterinarians later conducted autopsies on the elephants.
They were scheduled to be buried later in the day on Saturday, according to AP.
FILE PHOTO: A herd of wild elephants gathers near a field in search of food at a village in Nagaon district, Assam, India, on November 21, 2025. (Anuwar Hazarika/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Assam is home to an estimated 7,000 wild Asiatic elephants, and train-related deaths have been an ongoing issue.
At least a dozen elephants have been killed on railway tracks in the state since 2020, AP reported.
Asiatic elephants are considered endangered, and there are currently only an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 left in the wild, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
