Rajkot: Loco pilots of Western Railway (WR) successfully prevented eight lions from being crushed under the train over two consecutive days, said officials of the Bhavnagar Division on Sunday.
They said that Bhavnagar Division implements strict wildlife protection measures, specifically for lions. Train operators maintain vigilant observation while following speed limits. Joint efforts between the train operators and forest department trackers protected 104 lions during the fiscal year.
On Sunday, loco pilot Dhaval P from Sunrendranagar noticed five lions crossing the railway tracks on the Rajula City-Pipavav section. Dhaval, driving the Hapa-Pipavav Port goods train, stopped it using emergency brakes and informed train manager (guard) Lokesh Sah in Botad. Sah, in turn, informed the forest department officials who rushed to the spot. The train resumed its journey after the forest guards confirmed the safety of the lions.
Similarly, on Saturday, loco pilot Sunil Pandit from Junagadh spotted a lioness with two cubs crossing the railway tracks on the Chalala-Dhari section.
Pandit immediately halted the Amreli-Veraval passenger train and notified train manager Vidyanand Kumar in Junagadh. After the forest guards verified that the lions cleared the tracks, the train continued its journey.
Railway officials, including divisional railway manager (DRM) Ravish Kumar and additional divisional railway manager Himanshu Sharma, commended the alertness and prompt action of the loco pilots. With concerns about lion deaths on train tracks growing, the Bhavnagar Division has started putting in place a technology that can detect movement near tracks in real-time to allow loco pilots to stop or slow the train well in time and avoid a fatality. The intruder detection system (IDS), used in Japan’s bullet trains and successfully implemented by the Northeast Frontier Railways to protect elephants, needs optical fibres along the tracks.
The technology was first tested in the Amreli-Bhavnagar range in Sep. The project is now being tested along the Pipavav route, where the lion presence and density is higher. The system works by analysing vibrations transmitted through fibre optic cables that are buried alongside the tracks. These cables act as sensors, allowing the AI-powered system to identify the movements of wild animals, including lions, in the vicinity of the railway line in real-time. It alerts train drivers if any intruder, including a large animal, is detected.
Several Asiatic lions have either died or been seriously hurt on the railway line connecting Pipavav Port with north Gujarat. It was only after the Gujarat high court raised concern that the authorities came up with a standard operating procedure (SOP) to avoid such incidents. The forest department has erected fences along the track at regular intervals to save lions from getting hit by trains.
It has also directed the railways to limit the speed of trains while moving through protected Gir forest area.