In a move aimed at protecting livestock and improving railway safety, the West Central Railway's Bhopal Division is installing fencing along both sides of a 530-km railway stretch between Khandwa and Bina in Madhya Pradesh to prevent cattle from straying onto tracks.
The initiative is intended to address two concerns — the loss of livestock in train collisions, which can affect rural families, and the risk of accidents and disruption to train services, particularly with plans for operating trains at speeds of 130kmph and above.
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Senior Divisional Commercial Manager Saurabh Kataria told IANS in a statement that, out of the proposed total 530km fencing, work covering 74km has been completed at a cost of around Rs28.8 million.
The railway has set a target of completing the entire project by March 2027. The completed work includes 49km on the Khandwa-Itarsi section, 4km on the Itarsi-Bhopal section and 21km on the Bhopal-Bina section.
The division has also constructed four animal overpasses in the Budhni-Barkhera Ghat section to provide cattle with safe crossing routes. Three of these structures have been built on the up line and one on the middle line.
The overpasses are designed to allow animals to cross the railway corridor without entering the tracks…
