Overview
The Environment Ministry and Indian Railways have identified 110 sensitive stretches in elephant ranges and 17 stretches in tiger‑range states to prevent wildlife‑train collisions. Joint field surveys involving Project Elephant, the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), state forest departments and railways evaluated ecological conditions and proposed site‑specific mitigation.
Key Developments
- Out of 127 surveyed railway stretches (covering 3,452.4 km), 77 stretches (1,965.2 km) across 14 states were prioritised for mitigation.
- A package of 705 structures—including ramps, level crossings, bridge extensions, fencing, under‑passes and over‑passes—has been designed.
- Technology pilots such as Distributed Acoustic System (DAS)‑based Intrusion Detection System (IDS) are operational on 64.03 km of elephant corridors in Assam.
- An AI‑based early‑warning system at Madukkarai, Tamil Nadu, uses 12 tower‑mounted thermal cameras to detect elephants within 100 m and alert officials.
- New railway projects (track‑doubling, tripling, gauge conversion) now incorporate wildlife‑friendly designs, e.g., the Gevra‑Pendra line through the Achanakmar‑Amarkantak Elephant corridor