Gujarat govt forms committee to protect Asiatic lions from railway accidents on HC direction

After three lions were run over and killed by trains on tracks in January, the Gujarat HC directed the state government to form a committee to protect the lions.

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat government has set up a high-level committee tasked with framing modalities for unhindered movement of Asiatic lions in and around the Gir sanctuary area to protect them from railway accidents, the High Court was told on Wednesday.

After three lions were run over and killed by trains on tracks in January, a division bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal directed the Ministry of Railways and the Gujarat Forest and Environment Department to form a joint committee to work out SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) to protect lions.

When the suo motu PIL on the death of lions came up for hearing on Wednesday, Additional Advocate General Manisha Lav Kumar informed the division bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal that a committee was constituted and a couple of meetings had been held.

The committee comprises senior officers of the state forest department and Indian Railways.

The Additional Advocate General also stated that a high-level inquiry was conducted to fix the roles of officers of the forest department and Western Railway at the divisional level as directed by the high court. She stated the joint progress report will be submitted in another two weeks.

The high court directed the Railways and the forest department to submit a joint progress report affidavit and kept the matter for further hearing on July 12.

The HC had earlier directed the two respondents (Railways and Gujarat Forest Department) to ensure lions do not face any obstacles while roaming in and around the Gir sanctuary area and no accidents occur on the railway tracks involving them.

The court had ordered the constitution of an inquiry committee to probe the role of senior officers of Western Railway and the forest department regarding the death of lions on railway tracks.

The court also sought a status report on the decision to convert the tracks at the Amreli-Khijadiya section from the meter gauge to the broad gauge.

Authorities had stated in their affidavits that the railway track passes through forest areas as well as the locations between Pipavav Port-Rajula junction- Surendranagar lion corridor.