Train Kills a Young Elephant in the Deepor Beel, Assam
On Wednesday morning we were very saddened to hear that a young male elephant had been found dead on the railway tracks in the Deepor Beel region of Assam, India. This is a notorious accident hotspot for elephants crossing the railway line, and is exactly the same area where just two months ago an Elephant Family and Wildlife Trust of India patrol had saved fifteen elephants. The measures to prevent accidents are definitely working, but this latest accident highlights that such deaths will still occur if trains continue to pass through prime elephant habitat, and unless the state authorities also do more to alleviate the situation.
The Deepor Beel is a large permanent freshwater lake, in a former southern channel of the Brahmaputra River, which is recognised as an internationally important wetland. A 7km railway line runs alongside the beel, separating it from the surrounding forest. Elephants therefore regularly cross the tracks between the two, most often during the night. Unfortunately it is a very busy route for trains, and it is impossible to stop them running during the night. The area has therefore received some of the most intensive effort to prevent accidents. Elephant Family and the Wildlife Trust of India run patrols through the night – from 6pm to 6am – in collaboration with the forest and railway departments, and signboards (above left) have been installed to alert drivers. When elephants begin to move nearby, the night patrols immediately alert the railway stationmaster who sends the message to all trains passing through the section. The trains then substantially reduce their speed and continuously sound their whistle as they pass; in extreme circumstances they will stop to let the elephants pass. The patrols meanwhile drive the elephants away from the tracks with searchlights and occasionally fire-crackers. Such simple measures have prevented at least 55 potential accidents along this stretch over the past year.
Heavy rains in the early hours of Wednesday morning are believed to have hampered the efforts of the night patrol, reducing visibility and cutting sound. It was under such conditions that the young male is believed to have been struck at about 1am, in a section where the track curves sharply, impairing visibility further still, and where steep embankments have also been shown to trap elephants. The Wildlife Trust of India has been lobbying to have the embankments leveled, and so perhaps this latest incident will now galvanise the Ministry of Environment and Forests or Indian Railways to release the funds required.
Three elephants are now thought to have been killed on India’s railways so far this year, two in Assam, and one in Tripura. At least this is fewer than in previous years, and so Elephant Family and the Wildlife Trust of India have more resolve than ever to reinforce their efforts throughout the country.
written by Dan Bucknell on 24th June 11
