Hundreds of thousands of tourists visiting Goa’s popular beaches, will now be safer thanks to a Bengaluru-based start-up, whose thermal sensing drones will now help the State police to keep an eye on desolate areas by analysing body heat.
Superintendent of Police (Crime) Karthik Kashyap said this is the first time that a State police force has adopted the technology, to keep track on lonely beach stretches and other remote areas.
“This kind of deployment, in this scale was done for the first time in India, by any police department. The primary objective was to monitor any unusual gatherings, fights and/or suspicious activities,” Kashyap said on Wednesday.
“During night, special thermal sensing cameras were deployed which were capable of sensing body heat, to monitor dark areas and beaches for the safety of the people,” the official said, adding the cameras were mounted on drones with latest zoom-capable cameras.
Goa, is one of the most well-travelled to beach and nightlife tourism destinations in the country. The State attracts more than six million tourists every year, which includes more than half a million foreign tourists. Over the recent years, however a spate of crimes against tourists, especially in desolate areas or at night has marred the State’s reputation as a safe tourism destination, especially for women.
Kashyap, however, claimed that the technology would help monitor just such tracts for activity and movement, so that police surveillance can be made more effective and targetted.