SC verdict a salute to the sacrifices of Hindus: Togadia

Ahmedabad, Nov 9: Reacting to Supreme Court's Ayodhya verdict, controversial former Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader Pravin Togadia, who is among the faces behind the Ram Mandir construction movement started in the mid 80s, said that "the dream of Hindus to build the temple has been fulfilled.''

The saffron leader, who was ousted from the VHP and floated his own organisation-Antarrashtriya Hindu Parishad- said that a grand temple should now be constructed on the basis of the model he had built back in 1989 and which he had produced in the 'Dharm Sansad' held at Prayag in Allahabad, now called Prayagraj.

"Ram Temple at the same place of Ram's birth has been the Hindu demand for more than 450 years. Lakhs of Hindus sacrificed their lives, careers, families for this. Today, Supreme Court giving the same land for Ram Temple is a salute to this sacrifice. We welcome it happily and request the Central Government that it should be grateful to recognise this sacrifice of all. We have confidence that the Government now would build a grand Ram Temple at Ayodhya soon. We also appeal to all to maintain democratic peace while expressing joy," Togadia said.

While addressing a press conference in Ahmedabad, he said that it was for this movement that he left his medical practice with thousands of other "devotees of Ram''. "We had collected Rs 1.25 from eight crore Hindus at that time. In the movement, we lost 59 Ram 'bhakts' who were burnt at Godhra railway station in 2002. Many died in police firing. The central government should give credit to all who gave up their lives and respect their contribution," he said.

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All drama is created by you for your politics not for GOD..you may destory mosque but you cant destroy the iman of muslim..one day you will die and aswer the creator why you destoyed the mosque..

GOD who born and the God who die is not GOD..worship the creator not his creation...lets people live happy...now hindu muslim bhai bhai...no more ram janma boomi issue..

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Rajdhani Express Derails, 7 elephants killed after collision in Assam

News Network

December 20,2025

At least seven elephants were killed and one calf injured after a herd collided with the Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Assam's Hojai on Saturday morning, leading to disruption of rail services.

The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express struck a herd of elephants, resulting in the derailment of the locomotive and five coaches. No passenger casualties or injuries were reported, officials said.

The New Delhi-bound train met with the accident around 2.17 am, PTI reported. The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express connects Mizoram's Sairang (near Aizawl) to Anand Vihar Terminal (Delhi).

Railway has issued helpline numbers at the Guwahati Railway Station:-

•   0361-2731621
•   0361-2731622
•   0361-2731623

The accident site is located about 126 km from Guwahati. Following the incident, accident relief trains and railway officials rushed to the spot to initiate rescue operations.

Train Services Disrupted

Sources said that due to the derailment and elephant body parts scattered on the tracks, train services to Upper Assam and other parts of the Northeast were affected.

Passengers from the affected coaches were temporarily accommodated in vacant berths available in other coaches of the train. Once the train reaches Guwahati, additional coaches will be attached to accommodate all passengers, after which the train will resume its onward journey.

The incident occurred at a location that is not a designated elephant corridor. The loco pilot, upon spotting the herd on the tracks, applied emergency brakes. Despite this, the elephants dashed into the train, leading to the collision and derailment.

Last month, an elephant was killed after being hit by a train in Dhupguri in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. The incident took place on November 30.

The adult elephant was killed on the spot, and a calf was discovered lying injured beside the tracks.

Over 70 Elephants Killed In Train Collisions Over Last 5 Years

At least 79 elephants have died in train collisions across the country in the last five years, the Environment Ministry had informed Parliament in August.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh had said the figure is based on reports from state governments and Union Territory administrations for the period 2020-21 to 2024-25.

He said that the ministry does not maintain consolidated data on the deaths of other wild animals on railway tracks, including in designated elephant corridors.

Singh confirmed that three elephants, including a mother and her calf, were killed on July 18 this year after being hit by a speeding express train on the Kharagpur-Tatanagar section in West Bengal's Paschim Midnapore district. The incident took place near Banstala between Jhargram and Banstala stations.

The minister said several measures have been taken jointly by the Environment Ministry and the Railways to prevent such accidents.

These include imposing speed restrictions in elephant habitats, pilot projects such as seismic sensor-based detection of elephants near tracks and construction of underpasses, ramps and fencing at vulnerable points.

The Wildlife Institute of India, in consultation with the ministry and other stakeholders, has also issued guidelines titled 'Eco-friendly Measures to Mitigate Impacts of Linear Infrastructure' to help agencies design railways and other projects in ways that reduce human-animal conflicts.

Singh added that capacity-building workshops were conducted for railway officials at the Wildlife Institute of India in 2023 and 2024 to raise awareness on elephant conservation and protection.

A detailed report titled 'Suggested Measures to Mitigate Elephant & Other Wildlife Train Collisions on Vulnerable Railway Stretches in India' had also been prepared after surveys across 127 railway stretches covering 3,452 km.

Of these, 77 stretches spanning 1,965 km in 14 states were prioritised for mitigation, with site-specific interventions suggested.

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