Amreli: After the death of a lion that was struck by a passenger train on railway tracks near Bhesan village, between Lilia and Damnagar last week, the forest department has suspended a forest officer for alleged negligence.

Aradhna Sahu, the chief conservator of forests (CCF) for the Junagadh wildlife circle, issued the suspension order for forest officer Mahesh Khavadiya, citing that he failed to notify the railway station master or Lilia forest officers about the presence of wild animals near the tracks. The CCF noted that Khavadiya’s negligence resulted in the Mahuva-Surat train killing the lion at Bhensan village.

The order stated that a pride of lions was reportedly spotted around 9 PM on Wednesday, but formal documentation was only made at 1:26 AM on Thursday, over two hours after the lion was killed around 10:40 PM.

The CCF visited the site on Friday, where she spoke with Khavadiya, who was unable to provide satisfactory responses about monitoring the duty and attendance of railway trackers. Furthermore, he did not submit “satisfactory” records of his patrolling activities and field inspections.

The order concluded by noting that it appears not enough efforts were made to prevent accidents involving wild lions on the railway tracks, which highlights Khavadiya’s negligence. DeshGujarat