Where elephants & trains cross path, an AI-enabled system prevents accidents, Pg1

Key Highlights:

• An AI-enabled Intrusion Detection System (IDS) is preventing elephant-train collisions in vulnerable corridors.
• The system uses optical fibers to detect elephant movements and alert train operators.
• Since 2019, over 90 elephants have died on railway tracks in India.
• The Ministry of Railways has undertaken a Rs. 208-crore project to install IDS across 1,158 route kilometres.
• The pilot project is implemented in the 52-km Madarihat-Nagrakata section in West Bengal.

Detailed Insights:

• The Intrusion Detection System (IDS) detects elephant movements through vibrations sensed by optical fibers laid near railway tracks.
• Upon detection, the system alerts the loco pilot to reduce the train speed to avoid collisions.
• The Madarihat-Nagrakata section is a vulnerable elephant corridor with frequent elephant crossings.
• The Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) technology, based on Rayleigh scattering, is used to analyze vibrations and identify elephant movements.
• The system is particularly crucial during the 5pm-9pm danger zone when elephant movement is high.
• The technology is similar to that used by security forces on border areas to prevent infiltration.
• The project aims to mitigate the increasing number of elephant deaths on railway tracks, which has been a significant concern since 2019.

Scientific/Technical Concepts Involved:

• Intrusion Detection System (IDS): An automated system that detects unauthorized entry or activity.
• Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS): A technology that uses optical fibers to measure acoustic or vibrational disturbances.
• Rayleigh Scattering: The scattering of electromagnetic radiation by particles of a much smaller wavelength.