GUWAHATI (Metro Rail News): The Northeast Frontier Railway has been taking numerous initiatives to prevent and detect the movements of wild animals, especially elephants, that could approach railway tracks. The installation of IDS (intrusion detection system) is one such initiative. Northeast Frontier Railways has signed MoU with RaiTel Corporation of India to install IDS to reduce potential disasters and prevent train-elephant collisions.
G.R. Das, Chief Communication Engineer of N.F. Railway, and Zakir Siddiqui, Executive Director/Eastern Region/Railtel, signed the MoU in the presence of Shri Anshul Gupta, General Manager/N.F. Railway, and Shri Sanjai Kumar, Chief MD/RailTel.
The IDS is based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and uses existing optical fibers as sensors to identify the movements of wild animals and alert control offices, station masters, gatemen, and loco pilots. The system relies on a fiber optic-based acoustic technology that operates on the dialysis scattering phenomenon to detect the real-time presence of elephants on the track. The software based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) can detect abnormal movements up to a distance of 60 kilometers.
The N.F. Railway has decided to gradually install the IDS system in all other elephant corridors spread over the railway network, following the 100% success of the pilot project on IDS in the Chalsa-Hasimara section of the Dooars area, which is under Alipurduar Division in West Bengal and the Lanka-Hawaipur section under Lumding Division in Assam.
Apart from avoiding collisions between trains and elephants, the Intrusion Detection System (IDS) will also identify railway track fractures, intrusions on railway tracks, and warn about disaster mitigation in case of unauthorized excavation near railway tracks or landslides in the vicinity of the tracks.
The success of the pilot project has been remarkable, as it has prevented numerous train-elephant collisions and saved the lives of these animals approaching railway tracks. The IDS system will ensure the safety of both the animals and the passengers travelling on the train.
The installation of IDS is a great step towards making railway travel safe for everyone and ensuring the preservation of the natural habitat of wild animals. It is hoped that this system will be implemented on a larger scale to prevent accidents and protect wildlife.
