The killing of six elephants by the Coromondel Express which ran over a herd late on December 29 night in Odisha, has sent shockwaves round the world, and understandably. According to the report of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests' Elephant Task Force, submitted on August 31, 2010, train accidents had killed as many as 150 elephants since 1987. There have been many more similar deaths since then. There was particular reason for being especially careful in Odisha where train accidents had killed one elephant in June and four in August this year. In fact, 12 elephants have reportedly been killed in the State's Ganjam district in the last three months alone. Besides, the accident on December 29 occurred in an area where elephants cross the railway line regularly. There are as many as 10 signboards, warning that it was an “elephant crossing zone” between Rambha and Huma stations where the accident occurred.
Yet, the train was running from Howrah to Chennai at a speed of between 110 and 120 kilometres per hour when it mowed into the herd of elephants. Such was reportedly the speed that the bodies of the elephants hit fell here and there around the track. As could be expected, the railways and the Odisha forest department have started trading allegations about who is to blame, with the latter claiming that the railways had been informed in time and the elephants could have been saved had the train driver been warned on the wireless, and the former claiming that the forest department's information came at the time of the accident, which left no scope for a message to be sent.
An inquiry may well reveal what happened. But whatever the details of the present case, the railways have been guilty of showing utter indifference to the safety of animals crossing the tracks. If nothing else, there should be compulsory speed limits in areas where animals are vulnerable. Unfortunately, such limits, if they exist, are flouted at will.
It is not that the authorities have not had suggestions. Animal Equality, an animal rights organisation in Britain, has, according to its representative in India, Ms Amruta Ubale, outlined a number of steps in letters to the Union Ministers for Railways and for Environment and Forests. These include equipping trains with automatic speed governors which would be activated once trains enter forests where the maximum speed should be 20 to 25 kmph on even tracks and 40 to 45 kmph on steep tracts, and installing in them scintillating head lamps with halogen/LED bulbs which would help illuminate much longer stretches of tracks. Animal Equality has also recommended fitting trains with water cannons to remove animals refusing to budge from tracks. The suggestions also include the installation in trains of radar sensors to detect animals on tracks, determine the train's distance from these, and act as instant auto-brakes to prevent collisions. The Elephant Task Force's report too recommends several measures to prevent road and rail accidents. Besides site-specific short-term and long-term mitigation measures, these include the announcement of the principles of forest area, railway track and highway management, the grant of mining licences and rules governing the drawing and maintenance of power cables through forest areas. These are comprehensive, but will require time and funds. Meanwhile, the railway authorities themselves can implement some measures relatively soon.
Measures taken jointly by forest departments and animal welfare organisations in some States to avert elephant deaths include patrolling, electric fencing, installation of signage and hoardings, levelling of steep embankments, creation of awareness among train drivers and other railway staff, the clearing of vegetation at blind corners to improve visibility for train drivers, and so on. There have been some instances of success, such as in Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand where no elephant has died in train accidents since 2002. Much, however, needs to be done. Trains continue to kill.These measures will help; so will regular inspection and repair of power lines running through forests to prevent electrocution of elephants. While the implementation of all recommendations of the Elephant Task Force, including those against poaching for ivory, will take time, the one for creating a National Elephant Conservation Authority, on the lines of the National Tiger Conservation Authority, can be implemented immediately. It will provide a much-needed effective centralized direction to the task of protecting elephants.
Source: The Pioneer
