COLOMBO, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka Railways has started installing thermal-sensing cameras on locomotive engines to help prevent elephants from being struck by trains, the Department of Railways said on Thursday.
A high-level committee appointed to implement practical measures to reduce wildlife-related rail accidents recommended the camera system, the department said.
Environment Minister Dammika Patabendi and Transport Minister Bimal Rathnayake lead the committee. Sri Lanka Railways is also adjusting train timetables on locomotives operating on routes where elephants frequently cross or roam near the tracks, railway department said.
Authorities installed the first camera systems on Wednesday at the Dematagoda Railway Yard in Colombo and will conduct performance tests over the next week to assess how effectively the cameras detect elephants ahead of moving trains, railways department said.
Research engineer Jayakamal Abeysekara, who is involved in the project, told journalists that the trains are being equipped with long-wave infrared thermal cameras designed to detect heat signatures by capturing thermal emissions rather than reflected light.
Forty-six elephants were killed in train accidents in 2025, according to official data. Overall, 397 elephants died in Sri Lanka in that year. ■