AI-based alerts prevent elephants'' deaths in TN''s Madukkarai, centre launched in Gudalur

Chennai, Dec 20 (PTI) Encouraged by the AI-based alerts at Madukkarai in Coimbatore, which helped prevent deaths of elephants on the railway track, the Tamil Nadu government on Saturday launched an Artificial Intelligence-powered command centre for human-wildlife conflict management in Gudalur.

According to additional chief secretary of environment, climate change, and forest, Supriya Sahu, there have been "zero" elephant deaths on railway tracks in the last two years in Madukkarai, which once witnessed tragic losses of elephant lives.

"Last night, I was with my team at the Madukkarai AI Elephant Centre, reviewing the functioning of the AI early-warning system, which has enabled nearly 6,000 safe elephant crossings, showing that technology can meaningfully reduce conflict when applied thoughtfully," she said in a post on the social media platform 'X' on Saturday.

Sahu further said that no system was ever perfect but solutions like this showed what was possible when prevention was prioritised.

The AI warning system launched in February 2024 in Madukkarai forest range, features 12 towers and 24 high-resolution thermal cameras to detect elephant movement within 150 feet of the track and instantly alerts forest and railway officials, an official said. It detects the movement of other animals like deer, gaur, leopard, dhole and even King Cobra.

The state government informed that AI-powered Command and Control Centre for Human–Wildlife Conflict Management was launched in the Gudalur Forest Division of Nilgiris district, today marking a transformative step in the state’s approach to managing human–wildlife conflict through scientific, technology-enabled and community-oriented interventions.

The Gudalur Forest Division, one of the most complex and conflict-prone landscapes in Tamil Nadu, comprises fragmented reserve forests interspersed with tea, coffee and spice plantations, private landholdings and dense human habitations, while also forming part of historical elephant movement corridors.

"Increasing habitat fragmentation, degradation of natural ecosystems and disruption of traditional migration routes have resulted in a sustained rise in human–elephant interactions in recent years, leading to human casualties, injuries, livestock loss, crop depredation and damage to property," a release here said.

Conventional mitigation measures like trenches and solar fencing proved to be only locally effective in the dynamic and fragmented landscape but underscored the need for a coordinated, predictive and technology-driven conflict mitigation system, and hence the dedicated, AI-enabled Command and Control Centre at Genepool Garden in Nadugani Range, the government said.

Established at a cost of Rs 6 crore, the centre has been designed as a 24×7 centralised operational hub integrating real-time monitoring, early warning systems, rapid response coordination, scientific data analysis and community engagement to enable proactive and preventive management of human–wildlife conflict.

About 46 vulnerable human–wildlife conflict locations have been scientifically identified across Gudalur Forest Division. Of these, 34 locations have been equipped with AI-enabled surveillance cameras, while 12 locations have been provided with highly advanced AI-based monitoring systems capable of 360-degree detection.

The system captures and processes real-world data, enabling real-time identification of elephant movement and the generation of actionable alerts.

The alerts generated by the system and communicated to local communities on animal presence and potential conflict situations will allow forest personnel to initiate timely and targeted response measures, the release said and added that a dedicated toll-free helpline (1800–425–4353) has been activated.

Two drones with thermal imaging capabilities would support aerial surveillance, particularly during night and in areas with limited visibility. "Three GPS-enabled radio collars have been acquired for scientific tracking of elephants, with movement data integrated into the centre to enable predictive patrolling and long-term, evidence-based wildlife management," the release said.

Trained personnel will operate the centre in shifts. About 120 temporary watchers have been deployed alongside frontline Forest Department staff. An additional 40 temporary watchers will be engaged during peak elephant migration season from June to September to strengthen the conflict mitigation operations.

"It has been designed as a scalable and replicable model, with successful implementation expected to serve as a template for other high human–wildlife conflict landscapes across Tamil Nadu," the release said.

DMK MP A Raja, Sahu, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Force Srinivas R Reddy, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Chief Wildlife Warden Rakesh Kumar Dogra, Conservator of Forests and Field Director, Mudumalai Tiger Reserve R Kirubashankar, and district collector Lakshmi Bhavya Tanneeru were among those who participated in the inauguration. PTI JSP JSP ADB