Chhattisgarh deploys thermal drone to track jumbos, curb human-elephant conflict

Raipur: Elephants in Chhattisgarh are now being tracked even at night using an AI-enabled thermal drone, letting the forest department to monitor movement and profile individual animals deep inside forests. Forest officials in Udanti Sitanadi forest Reserve said the elephant movement peaks after dark, when conventional drones fail to capture clear visuals. The new thermal drone detects heat signatures, allowing staff to count elephants, track herd movement and identify lone bulls that often stray near habitations. The drone's laser range finder can measure the dimensions of elephants and surrounding terrain, enabling detailed profiling based on features such as tusk size, tail length, ear shape and body build.
Deputy director of Udanti Sitanadi forest reserve Varun Jain told TOI that such profiling is crucial to distinguish solitary bulls from herds, as loners are often responsible for crop damage and conflict incidents."At present, three lone elephants are moving across Udanti forest division and are difficult to identify visually. Thermal imaging helps us isolate individuals and monitor their movement and behaviour more accurately," the IFS said.While real-time identification is still under development, captured imagery will be analysed later and compared with existing databases to track recurring individuals across landscapes.Night surveillance and large-area mappingUnlike earlier models with limited flight time, the new drone can remain airborne for 40–45 minutes and map up to 100 hectares in a single sortie. Equipped with a DGPS module, it can generate centimetre-level accurate mapping, useful for forest surveys, plantation mapping and even revenue-related geospatial data.Officials said the drone also offers high zoom capability (up to 500 metres), allowing monitoring from a safe distance without disturbing wildlife.Though introduced primarily for elephant monitoring, the drone has broader applications. It can be trained for AI-based tracking of poaching activity, monitoring water bodies and surveying other wildlife, Jain said. Data collected is uploaded to a dedicated drone portal for analysis and long-term documentation. Such a drone portal was first developed by Chhattisgarh forest department in 2021.The latest drone system has been customised for the Chhattisgarh forest department and costs around Rs 9 lakh. Similar deployments are already underway in divisions such as Dharamjaigarh and Katghora, known for frequent elephant movement.Forest officials said thermal tracking will help improve early warning systems for villages, enabling field staff to alert residents when elephants approach human settlements. The technology is also expected to refine future elephant censuses, where laser-based measurements can provide more accurate population data."With elephant movement expanding across northern Chhattisgarh, technology like thermal drones will play a key role in balancing conservation and community safety," an official said.The department plans to evaluate field performance before considering wider deployment across other forest divisions.