From safe passages to AI-based early-warning systems and remote sensing technologies, India is adopting science-driven measures to reduce elephant deaths caused by train collisions, say officials.

Experts at a recent workshop identified key factors contributing to these accidents, including habitat fragmentation, land-use changes, high train speeds, night operations, and seasonal elephant movements, emphasizing the need for stronger coordination between railway authorities, forest departments, and scientific institutions, alongside standardized protocols for risk assessment, monitoring, and rapid response.

According to an official statement, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has identified 77 railway stretches across 14 states as priority areas for mitigation measures. These stretches were selected following joint assessments by Project Elephant, the Wildlife Institute of India, Indian Railways, and state forest departments.

Mitigation measures

The recommended mitigation measures include 503 ramps and level crossings, 72 bridge extensions or modifications, 39 fencing or trenching structures, four exit ramps, 65 underpasses, and 22 overpasses — totaling 705 structures aimed at safe wildlife passage and collision reduction.

Several new railway lines and expansion projects, including track doubling and tripling, now integrate wildlife-friendly infrastructure. Examples include the Gevra Road-Pendra Road rail line through an elephant corridor in Chhattisgarh state and the Wadsa-Gadchiroli rail line intersecting a tiger corridor.

A notable intervention is planned along a 3.5-kilometer sensitive stretch of the Azara-Kamakhya railway line in the state of Assam, which crosses the Rani-Garbhanga-Deepor Beel elephant corridor, where elephant fatalities have occurred in the past. This section will be elevated to ensure safe movement.

India hosts over 60 percent of the world's Asian elephants, yet habitat fragmentation and expanding rail infrastructure have heightened collision risks.

States such as Assam, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand frequently report incidents.

Experts recommend expanding early-warning systems, dedicated wildlife crossings, improved signage, and enhanced data-sharing.

AI-based detection systems and remote-sensing tools are being explored, including a system in Madukkarai, Tamil Nadu state, which uses 12 tower-mounted cameras with thermal and motion sensors to detect elephants within 100 meters of railway tracks and alert officials to slow trains.

Railway-related wildlife deaths remain a major concern. In December, seven elephants — three adults and four calves — were killed by a train in Assam at a stretch not officially designated as a corridor, derailing the locomotive and several coaches. No injuries were reported. Reports peg elephant fatalities on railway tracks at around 160 since 1987, with Assam and West Bengal accounting for the largest share.

The Statesman, India