Publication

Abstract : Agriculture is the primary source of income for the vast majority of inhabitants in rural parts of India. Rapid expansion of human settlement and agricultural activities, concomitant with India's unabated population growth, inflict enormous strain on wildlife habitats, ensuing in increased encounters between humans and wildlife. Direct and indirect impacts of human-animal conflicts endanger the livelihood of rural communities, affecting the United Nations Sustainable development goals (SDG) - 2, 3, 4, and 8. Remedial measures at the state level scarcely provide sustained all-inclusive relief to local communities, which call for tailored solutions that are often beyond reach.This paper presents an in-depth exploration of the realities of human-wildlife interplays through the case study of an Odisha rural community, in eastern India. A bottom-up participatory heuristic approach was adopted to discern the actual needs and expectations of the people, and develop pertinent affordable technical solutions. This collaborative probe culminated in a fence interconnected with sensors and cameras for real-time surveillance. This system was designed with You Only Look Once (YOLO) algorithm to process and analyze the captured images, disseminate real-time alerts to the local populace and the farming community.