In a first, Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR), Maharashtra, deployed an advanced sonar (sound navigation and ranging) system to tackle the illegal fishing problem in Totladoh reservoir inside the tiger reserve. The technology can detect objects hidden 500 feet underwater.
As per the court orders and Wildlife Protection Act (WPA) 1972, fishing is banned in the tiger reserve, but fishermen clandestinely enter the reserve during the night. The fishermen hide boats inside the water and vanish with the catch.
Illegal fishing continues even as Maharashtra and MP officials conduct joint patrolling regularly, along with measures like deployment of Special Tiger Protection Force, weapons, patrolling boats, use of drones.
The system deployed to search and seize boats involved in illegal fishing comprises a state-of-the-art transducer capable of detecting objects that lie flush on the lakebed. “It helps explore and map the underwater because sound waves travel farther in the water than radar and light waves. Sonar can listen to the sound made by vessels and also emit pulses and listen for echoes,” said Prabhu Nath Shukla, deputy director, Pench.
The system uses the latest compressed high-intensity radiated pulse technology, plus a combination of forward-looking transducer along with side scanning and down view features to identify objects up to 500 feet. “The system is integrated with GPS to determine and mark the exact location of the target,” said sonar consultant Capt Manish Bhardwaj.