Railway Vikas Nigam has taken a major step toward wildlife safety by applying to move railway tracks out of a protected forest area. Passengers and wildlife conservationists alike will welcome this initiative as a balanced approach to infrastructure development and environmental protection. Railway Vikas Nigam Limited has officially submitted an application on the Parivesh portal to divert the existing railway line away from the core area of the Palamu Tiger Reserve. This crucial project stems from a consensus between reserve management and railway authorities, backed by formal approval from the Railway Board. The new alignment will entirely bypass the core wildlife habitat and pass through village regions instead.
The core area of the Palamu Tiger Reserve has long been a point of ecological concern due to train movements.
The proposed diversion will relocate the 11-kilometer stretch of track running between Chhipadohar and Hehegara stations, a zone historically prone to wildlife casualties involving elephants and tigers. The newly proposed route will span approximately 14 kilometers, carefully skirting the outer periphery of the reserve to ensure animals remain undisturbed in their natural habitat.
To implement this vital shift, the project involves several structural changes on the ground.
Existing stations like Chhipadohar and Hehegda will be relocated within a 500-meter radius, and authorities are also considering the construction of a brand new station. Furthermore, planners have incorporated tunnels into the design specifically to safeguard established animal corridors. This entire process originated from a 2021 request by RVNL for a third railway line, which was initially rejected due to high environmental sensitivity.
In 2023, the National Wildlife Board mandated that the two existing lines must also be diverted from the core area. Following a comprehensive joint survey conducted in May 2023 by key officials including Prajeshkant Jena, Kumar Ashish, K.S. Patnaik, Arjun Singh, and Shankar Paswan, a final consensus was reached.
The district administration initiated the formal land acquisition process in March 2026 to pave the way for this crucial wildlife-friendly railway realignment.