Overview
- A male Western hoolock gibbon at Hollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary was filmed Friday crossing a netted canopy bridge over the Lumding–Dibrugarh rail line, which the Wildlife Institute of India said is the first recorded use of such a railway crossing by a gibbon anywhere.
- The bridge links tree crowns so strictly tree‑dwelling animals can move above the tracks without climbing to the ground, which exposes them to trains and predators and cuts them off from mates and food.
- Following rail electrification works, the Assam Forest Department and WII installed five double‑rope crossings with safety nets in February and March to reduce the impact of the single‑track line that runs through the sanctuary.
- IFS officer Parveen Kaswan shared the video on X, and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav praised the moment as an example of science‑led conservation.
- WII and other experts welcomed the proof of use but urged restoration of forest corridors and careful siting of future projects to reconnect isolated populations of the Western hoolock gibbon, India’s only ape and an IUCN‑listed endangered species.