Drones to keep eye on wildlife in Aravallis

The Haryana Forest Department on Friday inducted two drones to help it monitor wildlife and prevent illegal activities such as cutting of trees, encroachment and building of roads in the Aravalli Range.

The project was launched with a demonstration of the drones to the Minister of Forest and Wildlife, Rao Narbir Singh, at Tau Devi Lal Biodiversity Park in Sector 52.

Divisional Forest Officer (Wildlife) Shyam Sunder said that the drones were sourced from the United States in March. He said that the drones will help in gathering data on forest health, monitor encroachments, and identify areas for management intervention.

Mr. Sunder said that the drones could take pictures and videos that were better than satellite images and could be used to make 3D models of the area.

With the induction of the drones, Haryana has joined a select list of pioneer States to use the technology for conservation and management of forest and wildlife areas.

Many duties

Mr. Sunder said that the drones would be helpful in combing forest areas for illicit wildlife/forestry activities, registering and monitoring wildlife, early fire detection, and wildlife rescue. He added that the surveillance would be done as and when required.

Use of drones in management and conservation of forest and wildlife areas is increasingly being adopted worldwide.

The decision to purchase the drones to monitor the Aravalli Range in Gurugram and Faridabad was taken at a meeting, chaired by Mr. Singh, on January 13.

Officials said that since the technology is new, sufficient precautions and prevalent laws of the land need to be followed for operating the drones. Standard Operating Principles for flight planning, piloting and data collection are being developed by the department.