Drones will soon be pressed into service in the hill state of Himachal for monitoring of wildlife, generating human-wildlife conflict hotspots and to check instances of forest fires.
The state’s Forest Department has decided to deploy drones in the forest areas of Himachal for tracking and monitoring purposes with an aim of better management and conservation of the forest and wildlife resources of the state.
If things go according to the plan, drone-based analytics will be used to monitor and track wildlife, restrict poaching and generate human-wildlife conflicts hotspots. Drone-technology based information in the form of hotspot maps, vulnerability maps, frequency statistics, forest composition etc will also be collected for analyzing information on forest and wildlife offences including illegal logging, encroachment etc in the state.
Out of a total geographical area of 55,673 square kilometres, Himachal has a forest area of 66.52 per cent (37,033 sq km) and a forest cover of 27.72 per cent (15,433.52 sq km), as per the India State of Forest Report 2019.
“From mapping the patterns of forest fires to tracking the wildlife, drones will be used for various monitoring and evaluation purposes by the Forest Department. Aerial monitoring using drones will help the Department in preventing forest and wildlife offences besides monitoring the plantation growth in the state,” said Himachal Principal Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden Dr Archana Sharma while talking to The Pioneer.
She said that a firm will be hired for this and our Department’s staff will be trained to adequately process the information by using drones in the forests of Himachal.
As per the Department’s plan, drone technology driven information will also be used to monitor the growth and survival rate of plantations in the state.
With ongoing concerns about wildlife, Archana said that the drone technology will not only help in regular surveillance of wildlife but would also contribute towards preventing human-wildlife conflicts. In the past, the Department had used drones to monitor the inaccessible areas at the Pong wetland during the outbreak of avian influenza earlier this year, she added.
Notably, the hill state has been witnessing an increase in human-wildlife encounters, which often results in panic and bloodshed. Recently, the Forest Department announced to conduct a comprehensive survey to assess the nature and extent of human-wildlife conflicts, focused on two species namely common leopard and Asiatic black bear across the state.
The incidents of forest fires have also increased rapidly in the state. A total of 1,446 fire alerts were sent to the Himachal Pradesh Government agencies between November 2018 to June 2019 while these alerts rose to 4,110 for the fire season between November 2020 and June 2021.