MP seeks 280-km Railway barricading to tackle human-elephant conflict

Pursues extension of Tirupati-Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express to Mysuru benefiting devotees

Mysuru: MP Yaduveer Wadiyar called on Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupendra Yadav in Delhi yesterday urging him to address the human-elephant conflict in Kodagu and Mysuru.

The movement of elephants through coffee estates and agricultural lands causes significant crop loss due to damage and foraging. “Barricading the land between forests and human habitats with Railway tracks has proven to be an effective method to restrict elephants’ movement back into the forests. There is a need to implement this on a large scale along the borders of forests and agricultural lands,” the MP told the Minister.

The cost of installing Rail barricades is estimated at Rs. 1.3 crore to Rs. 1.5 crore per kilometre. “The forest border in my Constituency stretches over 400 km, with around 280 km of it requiring immediate barricading. Total cost of this exercise will reach Rs. 350 to Rs. 400 crore,” he said.

He urged the Minister to request the Railway Ministry for an allocation of Railway lines sufficient to meet the need. “If this is sanctioned, the project cost could be limited to the labour required for fitting the Railway lines as barricades,” he added.

Meets Railway Minister

Yaduveer also met Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, urging the extension of Tirupati – Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express to Mysuru, which would benefit the devotees who travel to Tirupati from nearby regions such as Mandya, Hassan, Chamarajanagar and Kodagu.

He even pushed for the swift completion of the Mysuru City Railway Station’s upgradation, emphasising the need to expedite the vetting process for the proposed improvements to enhance passenger experience.

Additionally, Yaduveer urged the Railway Minister to return the ‘Maharaja’s Saloon’ that was donated to the National Rail Museum, New Delhi, from the Mysuru Rail Museum. “The Maharaja’s Saloon originally belonged to Mysuru and at present, only a part of the Royal Train remains in Mysuru,” the MP noted. The relocation will complete the ‘Maharaja Special’ formation to promote heritage tourism.