Bangladesh Railway (BR) intends to conduct a pilot project to establish the viability of various technologies including infrared cameras, seismic sensors, sonic sensors and other sensor based alert systems to prevent elephant – train collision. This proposed pilot application will be a small-scale implementation that will lead to the recommendation of a technology that will prove practical, effective, reliable, economical, and with the lowest risk of failure due to human error for a new railway track between Dohazari and Cox’s Bazar via Ramu (DCRP) crossing known Asian elephant travel routes. The pilot study will be undertaken over an 18-month period with the financial support of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Parallel to this effort BR will construct a number of elephant overpasses and underpasses with funnel and exclusion fencing along the 100.8 km long line. The planning of that work and this pilot study will require continuous communication to carefully assess all options and the way forward. Intelligence on Wheels and its partner NTU have been shortlisted for this project.

Elephant crossing a railway track. Photo credit DIPTENDU DUTTA/AFP/Getty Images (CC BY 2.0)