Indian Railways has introduced an artificial intelligence-enabled Intrusion Detection System to reduce elephant deaths and prevent train collisions in forest and wildlife-sensitive areas. The system has been developed in coordination with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and is being deployed in vulnerable stretches, especially in the Northeast Frontier Railway zone.
AI-Based Detection System
The Intrusion Detection System uses Distributed Acoustic Sensors laid along optical fibre cables near railway tracks. It is trained to recognise the acoustic signatures of elephant movement. When elephants are detected near the track, the system sends real-time alerts to loco pilots, station masters and control rooms. This allows trains to slow down or stop in time.
Deployment Across Railway Zones
The system is already operational over 141 route kilometres in critical locations identified by forest departments in the Northeast Frontier Railway. Additional sanctioned work covers several zones, including:
- Northeast Frontier Railway – 403.42 route km
- East Coast Railway – 368.70 route km
- Southern Railway – 55.85 route km
- Northern Railway – 52 route km
- South Eastern Railway – 55 route km
- North Eastern Railway – 99.18 route km
- Western Railway – 115 route km
- East Central Railway – 20.3 route km
Other Mitigation Measures
Indian Railways has also taken several non-digital measures to protect elephants. These include underpasses and ramps for safe movement, fencing in vulnerable stretches, warning signage in elephant corridors, removal of vegetation and edible plants near tracks, solar-powered LED lighting in forest areas, and deployment of elephant trackers by forest departments. Honey bee buzzer devices have also been installed at select level crossings to deter elephants.
Incident Response and Monitoring
In case of any elephant-train collision, zonal railways investigate the incident with forest authorities. Speed restrictions are imposed in sensitive sections, and alerts are issued to train crews. Railways is also testing thermal vision cameras for night-time detection on straight track sections. Over the past five years, an average of about 16 such incidents has been reported annually.
Last Modified: April 27, 2026