Indian Railways’ AI system saves hundreds of elephants: Here's how

Guwahati: Gajraj Suraksha, an Artificial Intelligence-based surveillance system implemented by the Indian Railways a few years ago to conserve wildlife, has been incredibly successful in the northeastern states, saving the lives of hundreds of wild elephants. After the AI-powered equipment has been installed on the railway tracks, only one elephant has died in the last two years after being hit by a train. Earlier, up to 70 elephants were killed like this in a year. 

How does the AI system help?
The Gajraj Suraksha system was first launched in the northeastern states. There are railway tracks in a 221-kilometre stretch of forest land, which is also a primary elephant path. When the elephant is within 15 kilometres of the equipment, information would be relayed to the nearest railway station via a fibre-optic cable. The loco pilot would then be swiftly alerted, and the train would be stopped to avoid collision. The train will continue its journey only after the elephant has crossed the railway track. 

Gajaraj system in Kerala
The Gajraj system was deployed in the Palakkad–Coimbatore route last year, as lots of elephants used to get killed after getting hit by trains in this stretch. Here, the system can monitor the range for up to 32 km. It's also been implemented in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, as per reports.