20 cows mowed down by Shatabdi

At least 20 cows were killed on Wednesday after they were hit by a speeding Kalka-Shatabdi Express near Narela in north-west Delhi, affecting the movement of trains in the region, the Northern Railway said.

A herd of cows was crossing the track between Holambi Kalan and Narela, when the New Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi Express hit 20 of them “at full speed” around 5.44 p.m.

‘Horrific’

“The Railway personnel present there cleared the track. It was horrific. In fact, the impact was such that there was minor damage to the track as well. The train left the accident site around 7 p.m.,” a Northern Railway spokesperson said.

He said the driver of the train had applied emergency brakes but the cows got run over as the train was running at full speed.

He said if the cattleman had used the level crossing gate, which was just 800 m away, to cross the track, the tragedy could have been averted.

A North Corporation official said the bodies of the cows will be removed by a private contractor employed by the civic bodies and taken to a rendering plant in Ghazipur.