The Indian Railway authorities have decided to shutdown a 109 -year-old railway line in Uttar Pradesh.
The train line passes through the Dudhwa National Park of the state.
Railway officials said the 171-km rail route between Nanpara and Mailani that takes passengers through the forests and agricultural fields will be closed after the Lakhimpur-Mailani broad gauge route is opened later this month.
Railways decision to close down the century old line came after a high court order on the conservation of wild animals and the forest.
The authorities have planned to conserve the meter gauge line as a heritage one.
“We may start a toy train for Dudhwa visitors — one that will not harm the animals,” said an official.
Sanjay Pathak, director of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, said that in the past 20 years more than 100 animals had been killed in the train accidents.
The animals include spotted deer, tigers, elephants, crocodiles, rhinos and sloth bears.
On the other hand, over 30 lakh people living in hundreds of cluster villages between Nanpara and Mailani will be affected by the shutting of the rail section.
For these villagers, the railway line is their only lifeline that connects them to the outside world.
North Eastern Railway chief public relations officer (CPRO) Pankaj Singh said that the route through Dudhwa was completed in parts.
