An adult elephant was mowed down Tuesday by a speeding train in West Bengal's Bankura district, a forest official said.
The incident happened in the early hours at the Bishnupur Forest Range.
"The train rammed the elephant head on causing serious injuries on its forehead. The animal succumbed to its wounds a little later," said Divisional Forest Officer (Bishnupur) Kunal Vimal.
While incidents of elephants getting mowed by trains is quite frequent in north Bengal with over 50 being killed since 2004, Vimal said this was the first such accident in south Bengal in recent years.