Man dies as jumbo steps on him after whistle scare

Jalpaiguri: An employee of a safety device firm died in an accident as a kunki elephant, brought to Buxa for safety trials to prevent jumbo deaths on railway tracks, stepped on him. The deceased, Sandeep Chowdhury (57) of Noida, was a former Army officer. The incident occurred at Madhugachhtala in Buxa Tiger Reserve forest, between Alipurduar Junction and Rajabhatkhawa station, in the presence of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) GM Chetan Kumar Srivastava.
During the incident, representatives of five firms were carrying out the final test of the Elephant Intrusion Detection System (EIDS). The device is supposed to send an alarm to the control room and the loco pilot of any train operating in the section if an elephant comes within a 20-m radius of the track.
The elephant, Jonaki, was brought to the spot from Damanpur range. The test was supposed to be done during the passing of the NJP-Alipurduar Junction-bound vistadome train. While NFR officials were on one side of the track, Chowdhury and Jonaki were on the other side. As the train whistled while passing, the elephant panicked and tried to run. Chowdhury, who was standing beside Jonaki, fell while trying to escape. The elephant stepped on Chowdhury, killing him instantly.
The Indian Railways plans to install EIDS throughout the country in stretches close to forests.