AI Alerts to ‘Plan Bee’: How Railways saved 255 elephants from train collisions in northeast
The Northeast Frontier Railway has successfully prevented 255 elephant collisions with trains from January to September 2026, employing AI-based alerts, speed restrictions, enhanced patrolling and its Plan Bee system. Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, Chief Public Relations Officer, explained that the incidents were distributed across four divisions - Alipurduar, Rangiya, Lumding and Tinsukia - with 106 elephants in Alipurduar, 14 in Rangiya, 122 in Lumding and 15 in Tinsukia.
The AI-based Intrusion Detection System, utilizing Distributed Acoustic System technology, provides real-time alerts when elephants are near railway tracks, enabling timely intervention. Other measures include temporary and night-time speed restrictions, installation of Plan Bee systems that emit honeybee sounds to deter elephants, construction of underpasses for wildlife, and regular patrolling.
Railway staff, train crews, pantry car personnel and passengers are also being educated to avoid actions that attract elephants to tracks, and continuous communication with the Forest Department is maintained.
Written by urgent.news from The Indian Express's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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