Pench staff roll out AI tool to monitor wildlife, prevent man-animal conflict

Bhopal: In a high-tech push to the protection and conservation of wildlife in the state, authorities at the Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR) have introduced an AI-enabled monitoring system designed to provide real-time alerts on tiger, leopard and human movement near forest fringes. The move, according to officials, aims majorly at preventing human–wildlife conflict.One of central India's most iconic protected areas and the inspiration behind Rudyard Kipling's ‘The Jungle Book', Pench sprawls across 1,179 sq km along the southern slopes of the Satpura range in Seoni and Chhindwara districts. The reserve comprises a core area of 411.33 sq km and a buffer zone of 768.30 sq km, where nearly 130 villages are located."The rising tiger population and increasing human pressure around forest edges have made technology-driven conflict mitigation systems essential. The new platform, called PAWS (Protection and Alert Wildlife System), integrates GSM-enabled camera traps with artificial intelligence and departmental data networks to detect wildlife movement near human settlements and alert forest staff in real time," Puneet Goyal, deputy director, Pench, told TOI.He said the system provides instant alerts when animals approach villages, enabling rapid response teams to warn local residents and prevent encounters. "If a tiger is detected near a village boundary, the system sends alerts to forest personnel who can then immediately inform villagers and guide them on safety precautions," officials said.The platform also helps identify species involved in conflict incidents by co-relating camera-trap images with reported complaints, allowing authorities to track the movement of problem animals.Alerts are sent through SMS messages, mobile application notifications and dedicated communication channels used by forest response teams. Apart from conflict prevention, the platform can also detect suspicious human activity such as poaching or illegal logging, enabling swift law enforcement action.Officials said the system also serves as a central data repository, compiling information on wildlife movement and human activity. This data can help predict conflict hotspots, track seasonal animal movement and guide long-term conservation planning.