[Watch] Thermal Drones Deployed To Manage Man-Elephant Conflict In Odisha’s Keonjhar

Keonjhar: Amid the rise in man-animal conflict in some forested pockets of Odisha’s mineral-rich Keonjhar district, the Forest Department has deployed thermal drone cameras to keep track of the animals in two more forest ranges.

The project, which was first launched in Champua range on December 3, 2022, to track elephants’ movement at night, ensuring their safety and minimising casualties on both sides, has now been extended to Patana and Ghatagon ranges of the district.

Sources said safety of elephants has been a major concern for the department and the wild life activists as deaths of animals are being frequently reported from various parts of the district.

“Keonjhar has been witnessing an increase in man-animal conflict, leading to house and crop damage and human casualties. Elephant deaths have also been reported from the district. Monitoring movement of the pachyderms has always been a challenge for us amid the several infrastructure hazards like railway, electricity and open well and also pesticides use,” Keonjhar DFO Dhanraj Hanumant Dhamdhere told the media.

Use of thermal drone to prevent and mitigate man-elephant conflict in Keonjhar forest Division#elephant rescue#monitoring-census@CMO_Odisha @moefcc @PCCFWL_Odisha @pccfodisha @susantananda3 @rameshpandeyifs @DistAdmKeonjhar @spkeonjhar pic.twitter.com/TOuAgyHRzW

— Divisional Forest Officer, Keonjhar (T) (@DfoKeonjhar) March 13, 2023

He said efforts were made to upgrade the monitoring system as early warning and voice message systems, biking, daily foot patrolling and daytime hazard analysis could not provide real-time data. “We have been using the thermal drones for the last five days. The drone detects the live objects through their body temperature and those get flashed on the computer screen. It gives us a proper count of a herd and also the number the calves,” he said.

The DFO said that the drones are also being used to drive the herd away from a potential danger area. “The drones are not only helping us to know the herd composition and to drive them in a desirable direction but also to prevent casualties among forest staff,” he added.

There are seven ranges in the mineral rich district, which are prone to elephant menace.