A pilot scheme will soon be launched to electronically tag all elephants, particularly in high-traffic areas, to keep track of their movement and warn Railway officials in time to enable them to avoid accidents.

This was among the decisions taken at a review meeting on Tuesday chaired by the Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jayanthi Natarajan, with the a co-ordination committee of officials from the Railway Ministry.

The meeting took serious note of the recent death of elephants due to collision with trains in Odisha and West Bengal. In Odisha, five elephants died after being hit by trains, including a pregnant female elephant with foetus.

The meeting also decided to reiterate an earlier advisory wherein vulnerable patches for wildlife would be identified, and signage put up to warn train drivers and other railway personnel, enabling trains to slow down.

Also, thick vegetation alongside rail tracks would be removed by the Railways, and train attendants would be directed not to throw food stuff out.

> aditi.n@thehindu.co.in

Related Topics