The Indian Railways began construction of metal beam fencing along the 622-kilometre stretch between Mumbai and Ahmedabad to prevent stray cattle from being run over by trains. All eight tenders have been awarded and work along this stretch will cost approximately Rs 245.26 crore, the Railway Ministry said.
“The fencing is very robust as it consists of two W-beams. A W-beam type stands for wide flanges, which are thicker, that aid in resisting bend stress. Such fencing is used in highways and expressways, especially at accident-prone areas to provide protection to vehicles as well as pedestrians,” the Railways said. The work is expected to be completed by May end.
In November 2022, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that approximately 1,000 km long boundary walls would be constructed along railway tracks over the next five or six months. Indian Railways had earlier experimented with fences on Delhi-Agra route, at stretches made of concrete sleeper bars used on tracks. But fencing has generally never worked for Indian Railways, according to an Indian Express report.
Railway Ministry data showed that train losses due to cattle/human run-over incidents shot up this year. While 2,115 train loss cases were reported in FY 2022, 2,650 were reported in just six months between April and October 2022.