Rajasthan to have advanced wildlife surveillance equipped with high-tech devices

The Information Technology department of state government of Rajasthan is aiming to develop and install advanced surveillance mechanism in 1,100 critical areas of the five protected sites in the state by March 2018. The new mechanism will be equipped with the hi-tech devices like drones, high-resolution optical and dome cameras, thermal-imaging cameras and radio sets.

The department has requested floating tenders of Rs 50 crore for the development, installation, and five year operational-maintenance expenses of the system.

After the installation of this wildlife surveillance and Anti-Poaching system, wildlife conservation activities will gain efficiency. Since most of the protected species in Rajasthan are feline, who are also nocturnal in nature, these mechanisms will help officials in the nighttime monitoring of these animals. To gain maximum benefits out of the system, the department has already identified critical areas that are in the most need of such mechanisms. These 1,100 regions include 283 critical areas in Ranthambore National Park, 420 in Sariska, 417 at Mukundra , 20 at Jawai bandh and 33 at Jhalana.

It is noteworthy, that though other wildlife reserves such as Kaziranga National Park and Jim Corbett National Park already have similar facilities, Rajasthan would be the first state to have the high-tech surveillance mechanism at an extensive scale.