Chennai, Dec 21 : The Tamil Nadu Forest Department is planning to introduce thermal drones for night-time surveillance to track wild elephants and prevent them from entering human settlements.

Officials believe this system will enable forest staff to monitor elephant movements from a safe distance and alert residents in advance.

According to officials, elephants often leave forests at night and venture into human habitation across the forest ranges, causing conflicts. With the new system, drones will detect elephant movements, and announcements will be made from Forest Department vehicles equipped with Bluetooth-connected speakers.

These vehicles will also emit loud noises to scare the animals back into the forest.

A senior official said that a few companies have already demonstrated drone operations and the department will soon finalise a vendor.

Currently, this system is being implemented in the Hosur Forest Division, where it has shown promising results.

The department is also planning to procure AI-enabled cameras to monitor elephant movements, further reducing human-animal conflict.

Recent data submitted in the Lok Sabha highlights the urgency of such measures. Over the past five years, 256 people have died due to human-elephant conflicts in Tamil Nadu, including 61 deaths in 2023-24 alone.

For instance, on December 17, a man named Chandran, 62, succumbed to injuries sustained during an elephant attack at Gajam Mudi Estate in Valpara.

The attack, which occurred on November 10, injured four people, including Chandran.

Meanwhile, the wild elephant population in Tamil Nadu has risen to 3,063, as per the latest synchronized census conducted between May 23 and 25, 2024, in coordination with neighbouring states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh. This marks an increase of over 100 elephants compared to the previous census in 2023.

Officials have stated that Tamil Nadu's forests can sustain an elephant population of approximately 3,000 to 3,500. Currently, the population is stable and healthy.

The Nilgiri Elephant Reserve and Coimbatore Elephant Reserve hosts the highest density of elephants among the five reserves in the state. The Forest Department hopes that the combination of thermal drones, AI-enabled cameras, and other measures will reduce negative interactions between humans and elephants, ensuring safety for both.

/IANS