Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav has shared video footage of a hoolock gibbon using a canopy bridge over a railway line in Assam, describing it as an example of “tech-led conservation”.
In a post on X, Yadav said, “Good to see that mitigation measures such as this canopy bridge made over a railway passing through Assam have started being used by Hoolock Gibbon. This shows science-led small-scale efforts can also be of great help in biodiversity conservation.”
The video showed the gibbon skillfully swinging across the rope-based canopy bridge suspended above the railway track, demonstrating how the structure allows safe movement between fragmented forest patches.
The canopy bridge has been installed inside Hollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary in Assam’s Jorhat district. The sanctuary is home to nearly 125 western hoolock gibbons, India’s only ape species.
The Mariani–Dibrugarh railway line passes through the sanctuary, posing a long-standing threat to the tree-dwelling primates, which rarely descend to the ground.
Wildlife experts have frequently expressed concern over habitat fragmentation and the danger posed by speeding trains within the sanctuary area.
The canopy bridge project was developed by the Wildlife Institute of India in collaboration with the Assam Forest Department and the Northeast Frontier Railway. Several similar bridges are planned at key crossing points to help gibbon families move safely through the forest canopy.
