In a tragic and preventable incident two elephants were hit by a speeding train when they were crossing the tracks.  The two victims were a pregnant female that was soon to be a mother and a female baby approximately 9 months old.   The pregnant female died from the impact and the baby was traumatized and paralyzed in her hind legs. Since the baby was immobile from the collision, the panicking herd left her. Sadly, she is now an orphan and has been named Bani.     

It's tempting to call this an unfortunate accident, but in reality, 186 elephants have died on India's train tracks since 2009. If Indian Railways prevented trains from speeding through wildlife corridors or utilized AI early warning technology, this mother elephant would be alive today and baby Bani wouldn’t have life-threatening injuries.

Railways must immediately reduce train speeds in wildlife corridors so elephants have a chance to get out of the way. Advancements in technology exist that can now detect and alert trains of elephants near train tracks, but these technologies are not being widely used.

At just 9 months old, the orphaned Bani is critically injured and in the fight for her life at the Wildlife SOS Elephant Hospital. It is unknown if she'll recover, but everything is being done to save her. 

In Bani’s name and honour, please take action and implore Indian Railways to implement measures to protect this iconic species by reducing the speed of their trains and utilizing the latest technology to prevent collisions in elephant corridors.