A tragic accident took place in Hojai district of Assam in the early hours of Saturday. Eight wild elephants died after being hit by the Sairangnai Delhi Rajdhani Express. The incident occurred on a railway track passing through a forest area in the district, where a herd of elephants was crossing the railway line. The collision was so severe that five coaches including the engine of the train derailed.
because of this accident Northeast Frontier Railway Nine trains on the (NFR) route have been cancelled. 13 have been controlled and two have been short-terminated, although the cause of the accident is said to be fog due to which the accident occurred and the train driver could not see the elephants.
But this accident has again raised questions on the safety of Gajanan. However, many steps have been taken by the Railways for the safety of elephants in elephant-dominated areas. Many times, due to the movement of elephants in the corridor made for elephants, trains are also canceled by the Railways. Train speed limits have been fixed on train routes through which elephants pass.
Know which are those routes where accidents have been happening
It is not that this is the first time there has been a collision between a train and elephants. Such accidents have happened before also. In India, Assam (Lumding-Silchar, Rangiya-Alipurduar route), Alipurduar-Siliguri line (Northern West Bengal), Siliguri-New Jalpaiguri-Alipurduar route, Keonjhar, Jajpur, Sundergarh, Ganjam train route of Odisha, Jharkhand-West Bengal train route, Madukkarai section on Coimbatore-Thrissur route, Tamil Nadu and Kerala (Western Ghats section) and Train services have already been disrupted due to elephants on the Haridwar-Dehradun railway line and incidents of collision between trains and elephants have also occurred.
Let us know which are those sensitive railway routes, where incidents of collision between trains and elephants have been occurring. This is why these tracks pass through or near elephant habitats or corridors:
North-East and Eastern India Located in Lumding Division (Assam), between Guwahati and Lumding, there is frequent elephant movement and collision on the tracks around Jamunamukh-Kampur. The crashes involving Rajdhani Express took place here on Saturday.
Similarly, the river passing through Gorumara and Chapramari forests located in North Bengal of West Bengal. Alipurduar-Siliguri LineThere have been many deaths of elephants due to collisions. Siliguri-New Jalpaiguri-Alipurduar RouteThese are special rail links connecting elephant areas in northern West Bengal.
of Odisha Keonjhar, Jajpur, Sundergarh, Ganjam And in other districts, some areas adjacent to the forest are known for elephants crossing the road and train accidents. Sometimes goods trains and passenger trains collide with elephants near Banspani of Champua range in Keonjhar.
of southern india Madukkarai section on Coimbatore-Thrissur route (Tamil Nadu-Kerala Border) passes through the habitat of elephants. Due to previous incidents in this area, special systems to detect elephants have been installed.
Jharkhand-West Bengal route (e.g., near Saranda and Jhargram forests) but elephant deaths have occurred on the track connecting Tatanagar (Jamshedpur) and Howrah/Adra route. Here, due to previous incidents on Manoharpur-Rourkela stretch (Howrah-Mumbai route), a trial is being conducted to detect the entry of elephants.
of North India Haridwar-Dehradun Railway Line Passes through Rajaji National Park. It was earlier a hotspot for train-elephant collisions, where several deaths occurred, but later safety measures reduced incidents.
Train services affected due to accident
Train movement in Assam was affected on Saturday due to the accident in Hojai district. Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) chief spokesperson Kapinjal Kishore Sharma said that after the accident, nine trains have been cancelled, 13 have been controlled and two have been short-terminated.
In view of the derailment of Train No. 20507 DN Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Jamunamukh-Kampur section under Lumding division, trains passing on down line in Lumding-Guwahati section have been affected.
The canceled trains include Rangiya-New Tinsukia Express, Guwahati-Jorhat Town Jan Shatabdi Express, Guwahati-Badarpur Vistadome Express and New Tinsukia-Rangiya Express. Along with this, train number 15769 (Alipurduar-Mariani) was short-terminated at Digaru. Has been canceled between Degaru-Mariani. 15770 (Mariani-Alipurduar) was short-terminated at Degaru and train service between Mariani-Digeru was cancelled.
Why do elephants collide with trains?
Tracks passing through forest areas cut off elephant movement routes, especially in Assam, West Bengal, Odisha and other states. Because of this there is a collision between elephants and trains. Experts say that there are fogs in winter and Visibility reduces. Because of this accidents happen. Elephants often move at night, morning or evening. Visibility is reduced due to dense forest, turns, fog and rain.
Read this also- Railways implemented Gajraj technology in Assam, what is it and how will it help in saving the lives of elephants?
They say that thisDue to this, the train drivers see the elephants too late and are unable to stop and the train has a high speed and it takes too long to apply the brakes, leading to accidents. Trains have to cover a distance of hundreds of meters to stop. Even if the loco pilot sees the elephants, it is often impossible to apply brakes in time.
Experts say that elephants often move in herds and cross tracks in groups that also include their children. If one elephant is injured, other elephants may panic or try to protect their young, leading to increased deaths.
Additionally, in many stretches, there are no sensors, cameras or real-time alerts to warn train drivers about elephants ahead. Due to which these accidents happen.
What are the safety and prevention measures?
To prevent collision of elephants with trains AI-based early warning system and detection technology has been installed. Speed restrictions were imposed in high-risk forest areas. Intrusion Detection System (IDS) has been installed in the identified elephant corridors. Joint patrolling of the Forest Department and Railways is done to keep an eye on the movements of elephants, so that accidents can be prevented. Many such incidents have come to light, when accidents have been prevented due to the promptness of the train driver.
Read this also- Big accident in Assam: Rajdhani Express collided with a herd of elephants, 8 elephants died, 5 coaches derailed.
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