The Northeast Frontier (NF) Railway on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with RailTel Corporation of India Limited to install an Intrusion Detection System (IDS) to avert train-elephant collisions.
Installation of IDS in important sections is one of the many initiatives taken by the NF Railway to prevent and detect movement of wild animals, especially elephants, approaching the tracks, according to a release issued by NF Railway.
The MoU was signed by NF Railway’s Chief Communication Engineer G R Das and RailTel’s Eastern region Executive Director Zakir Siddiqui.
The NF Railway General Manager Anshul Gupta and RailTel Corporation of India’s Chief Managing Director Sanjay Kumar were also present on the occasion.
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After 100 per cent success of the IDS pilot project that was undertaken in the Chalsa Hasimara section of the Dooars area under Alipurduar Division in West Bengal and Lanka Hawaipur section under Lumding Division in Assam, it has now been decided to install the system gradually in all other elephant corridors, spread in areas under the NF Railway.
The system is based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and existing optical fibres will be used as sensors to identify movements of wild animals at locations and alert control offices, station masters, gateman and loco pilots.
It uses fibre optic based acoustic system working on the principle of dialysis scattering phenomenon to sense the real time presence of elephants on the track.
The AI based software can monitor unusual movements up to a stretch of 60 km.
In addition, the IDS will also help in detecting rail fracture, trespassing on railway tracks and send out alerts on unauthorised digging near railway tracks, landslides near tracks etc., the release added.
