Bhopal: A stretch of National Highway 45 in Madhya Pradesh has become India’s first wildlife-safe highway, thanks to special red markings that help prevent animal accidents.
The 11.96 km section passes through the Rani Durgavati Tiger Reserve, earlier known as Nouradehi. This reserve is the state’s largest, covering 2339 sq km across the Sagar, Damoh, and Narsinghpur districts. It has 26 tigers and growing numbers of deer, nilgai, chinkara, and blackbuck.
Vehicles often sped through this area before, leading to frequent collisions with animals like tigers, leopards, deer, wild dogs, jackals, and otters.
Now, the National Highways Authority of India has added 5 mm thick red tabletop block markings over about 2 km of the sensitive zone. These create vibrations when driven over, and the colour red makes drivers slow down naturally.
Since the markings were put in place, no road accidents or wildlife injuries have been reported in the area.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari shared a video of the project on social media, highlighting how it protects animals while keeping the road usable.
The reserve joined the National Tiger Conservation Project in 2018. Authorities have also released more animals in safe parts to boost numbers.
This simple step shows how small changes on highways can make a big difference for wildlife in forest areas.