Andhra Pradesh to follow Karnataka model for protection

VIJAYAWADA: Deputy Chief Minister and Minister Forest and Environment Pawan Kalyan has directed authorities to introduce an advanced technology-based administrative system on the lines of Karnataka to protect every inch of forest land in the State.

Key points

• Pawan Kalyan suggested introducing an e-Gastu mobile application to improve accountability among field staff.
• The system will enable digital monitoring of forest mapping, wildlife movements and various forest activities.
• The team submitted a detailed report to Pawan Kalyan.
• The proposed ICCC will facilitate centralised monitoring of forests through a geo-spatial dashboard, drone surveillance and camera traps to analyse wildlife populations.

During a review session on Thursday, Pawan Kalyan ordered office-holders to prepare an action plan to establish an Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) at the newly developed Aranyaramam. The system will enable digital monitoring of forest mapping, wildlife movements and various forest activities.

For context, a State Forest department team, led by IT advisor Pennamreddy Nagababu, lately visited Karnataka for three days to study its IT systems, GIS technology, mobile applications and ICCC. The team submitted a detailed report to Pawan Kalyan. This person directed senior authorities to adopt successful practices followed by Karnataka state forest department.

In practice, the proposed ICCC will facilitate centralised monitoring of forests through a geo-spatial dashboard, drone surveillance and camera traps to analyse wildlife populations. It will additionally track vehicles travelling through forest routes, monitor patrolling, forest fires and human-wildlife conflicts.

Pawan Kalyan suggested introducing an e-Gastu mobile application to improve accountability among field staff. The app would monitor patrolling, attendance, route guidance, safety measures and submission of reports. He additionally proposed integrating it with the existing Forest Portal and Single Sign-On systems.

Taken together, the developments around andhra Pradesh to follow Karnataka model for protection point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.