Hon. Minister of Indian Railways, Sri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Hon. Minister of Environment Forest and Climate Change, Sri Bhupender Yadav; and Project Elephant Director:

It has been unrelenting!! The staggering number of elephant deaths on India’s deadly train tracks is truly appalling. Ten elephants, including two pregnant ones, crushed to death in a span of two weeks, multiple elephants mowed down due to reckless speeding trains.

TEN ELEPHANTS HAVE DIED on India’s deadly Indian Railways in less than a month:

1. As recently as December 25th – the holy day of Christmas when people were celebrating with their families, a herd of elephants were mourning the death of two of their own family members, killed by a speeding Goods train. They were crossing the train tracks near the Bhusandapur forest in Odisha with a herd of 20 elephants. Another grievously wounded elephant died on December 26th, after being hit by the same train near the Bhusandapur railway station in Khurda district. Details ▶️ Click Here to Read the Story
2. November 27, 2021 saw one of the most gut wrenching tragedies, with three elephants, including a pregnant one mowed down by a speeding train near Madukarai in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Details  ▶️ Click Here for the Full Story
3. Just three days later, on December 1, 2021 two elephants were killed on the Indian Railways in the Morigoan district of Assam. Details here ▶️ Click Here for Details
4. On December 13, 2021, two wild elephants were found dead of suspected poisoning in Assam's Karbi Anglong district in Assam. The carcasses of the pregnant elephant, whose unborn infant had been ejected out of her womb, and her male calf were found at Borbhetaga, bordering the Kaziranga National Park. In 2021 and in Assam alone three elephants were killed by poisoning, 18 others died from lightning, 4 killed in train accidents, 4 by electrocution, 17 due to “unknown reasons”, and 24 elephants died due to natural causes. Details ▶️ Click Here for Report on the Assam Massacre in 2021

Collision after collision caused by India’s reckless trains have resulted in the deaths of at least 60 elephants in three years - between 2016 and 2019.  ▶️ Click Here to Read India's CAG Scathing Report 

It also reveals that these senseless deaths could have been avoided, had the forest and railway departments coordinated and communicated. Among the flaws pointed out in the CAG report, even the most basic signage to alert the loco-pilots is missing, a significant lack of training for the loco-pilots was also cited. 

According to a document obtained by an activist, using the Right to Information Act, 1160 elephants were killed between 2011 and 2020, with 186 deaths caused by speeding trains, 741 elephants electrocuted, and 169 elephants poached for the illicit wildlife trade that fuels terrorism. Given that elephants reproduce only every five years, the rate at which these elephants are being killed will cause their demise in less than 10 years. This in turn will return to haunt humanity. ▶️ Click Here to Read the Full Story

We humbly request that the Union Ministries of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the Railways take this recent spate of deaths seriously, implement the CAG recommendations urgently and enforce the existing laws of the land, while also amending them to cater to the needs of the wildlife in India's rapidly changing landscape. We urge you to implement these basic measures as suggested in the CAGs report - Click Here

• Reduce and enforce speed limits in the forests, allowing enough time for the loco-pilots to apply brakes and prevent tragedies. We propose a 30 km/h speed in sensitive areas, and suspend the loco-pilots who flout the speed restrictions with loss of pay!
• Install conspicuous signage as a matter of urgency (Voice for Asian Elephants Society is willing to help implement this project
• Install sensor-based alarm systems along the train tracks, which we are implementing in West Bengal
• Clear up the vegetation, in order to enhance visibility that will help detect elephants – we are willing to undertake this task
• Enhanced foot patrolling – there are enough people in India and we will collaborate with the Ministry of Railways to implement this project
• Penalize people who toss garbage out of the trains, as the smell draws elephants to the train tracks, making them vulnerable to the speeding trains
• Build underpasses and overpasses URGENTLY, proposals were submitted by numerous NGOs but the bureaucratic processes and egos are preventing the advancement of these projects
• We propose a cash award system to loco-pilots who slow down and save elephants, as long as they present evidence with date and time registered in cell phone cameras

Why is it important to save the endangered Asian Elephants?

The demise of India's heritage animal, the embodiment of Lord Ganesh and a keystone species - the endangered Asian Elephants that are being pushed closer to the brink, would be a colossal loss not only for many species, but also for humans.

As a keystone species elephants are indispensable to the forest ecosystems. The survival of many species depends on elephants. Being the largest living land mammal, elephants create pathways to waterholes and fodder, so the smaller species can find resources.  A recent study conducted by the International Monetary Authority suggests, elephants are climate mitigators. They trample softwood trees and allow sunlight and rain to penetrate and nourish the hardwood trees that sequester more CO2. Climate change is one of the gravest existential threats to humanity, and elephants are helping mitigate climate change.  Elephants disperse seeds in their dung across vast areas. Seeds become trees, and trees give us oxygen – the very BREATH OF LIFE. Think about that! We are decimating the very life-giving source. It is clear that their demise will return to haunt humanity. Read More Here

There are approximately 40,000 Asian elephants on the entire planet, listed under the endangered species category by the IUCN. India is their LAST BASTION, housing fully 55% of the global Asian elephant population i.e. 27,000+. However, in order to sustain the burgeoning human population, on track to becoming the world's most densely populated country by 2027, forests and wildlife are being decimated at an unsustainable rate in India. Elephants have lost 80% of their habitats to reckless development, mining, and agriculture, as railways and roadways cut through the remaining 20% of their forests. Homeless, desolate, and famished, these elephants are left with no choice, but to venture out of the forests to find food in nearby villages. Most often they have to cross the deadly roads and train tracks, only to get hit and killed by a truck or train. It's worth repeating that the disappearance of these megaherbivores will result in the collapse of forest ecosystems and ultimately the implosion of human civilization. This is no conjecture!

We implore you, Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Sri Bhupender Yadav, Minister of Railways, Sri Ashwini Vaishnaw, and Project Elephant Director, to use your powerful positions and political clout to protect the endangered Asian elephants of India. We standby to collaborate in helping ensure that we implement all available solutions to save this keystone species, while also preventing the collapse of human civilization.  

Thank you for your attention in this matter!

Sincerely,

Sangita Iyer (M.A. Environmental Education & Communication, B.Sc. Biology, Broadcast Journalism)

Biologist, National Geographic Explorer, Founder, Voice for Asian Elephants Society