An Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based early warning system designed to track the movement of big cats has been activated in three locations in the rural areas of Nagpur near the Pench Tiger Reserve, in a move aimed at reducing human-wildlife conflict. Officials said the advanced system will soon be expanded to 40 sensitive locations, enabling real-time alerts to villagers and forest authorities about the presence of tigers, leopards and other potentially dangerous wildlife.
Forest officials confirmed that the technology has already begun functioning and has generated alerts during the initial phase. On Thursday night, the system issued a second warning about tiger movement near Pipariya village close to Deolapar, alerting both local residents and forest officials.
Network planned in 40 sensitive locations
The project has been jointly implemented by the Forest Department and the Nagpur Rural Police after identifying 40 villages and forest-fringe areas vulnerable to wildlife movement. These locations fall under the jurisdiction of the Pench Wildlife Division as well as the regional forest division.
Authorities expect the installation of the full AI monitoring network to be completed by April 15. Once operational, the system will help closely track wildlife movement in villages located along forest boundaries and provide timely alerts to prevent encounters between humans and wild animals.
Human-wildlife conflict a major concern
The initiative comes amid rising incidents of human-wildlife conflict in rural Nagpur. Over the past two-and-a-half to three years, nearly 15 villagers have reportedly lost their lives in attacks by tigers or leopards. Several such incidents triggered public protests and unrest in affected villages, posing law-and-order challenges for authorities.
To address the growing threat, the Forest Department decided to adopt AI-driven monitoring technology capable of warning residents in advance about the presence of predators in nearby areas.
How the technology works
The system has been developed with support from Marvel, which is working to expand the use of artificial intelligence across various government sectors.
As part of the project, high-capacity surveillance cameras and acoustic sensors have been installed at selected locations in forest-fringe villages. The system relies on two advanced detection techniques — bio-acoustic monitoring and bio-visual monitoring.
When predators such as tigers, leopards or bears move through forest areas, animals like spotted deer, sambar, monkeys and peacocks emit distinctive alarm calls. The bio-acoustic monitoring system detects these calls and analyses them using AI algorithms to generate warning alerts.
Simultaneously, the bio-visual monitoring system captures images through installed cameras. If the footage identifies a wild animal, the system verifies the species and automatically sends an alert notification. Warning messages are transmitted directly to the mobile phones of forest officials and local residents, enabling them to take precautionary measures and avoid entering high-risk zones.
Officials said that within four days of installation, the system has already generated two alerts regarding tiger and leopard movement, demonstrating its potential to prevent attacks.
Plan to expand to other reserves
Encouraged by the initial results, the Forest Department is planning to extend the AI-based wildlife alert system to other major reserves in Maharashtra, including the Navegaon-Nagzira Tiger Reserve and the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve in Chandrapur district.
Officials confirmed that a memorandum of understanding has been signed between the Forest Department and the technology partner to expand the project in future phases.
Authorities believe the initiative will significantly strengthen early warning mechanisms in forest-fringe villages and help reduce casualties caused by tiger and leopard movement across the state.
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