Hyderabad The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), the administrative body of Lord Venkateshwara temple on Tirumala hills in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati district, is contemplating deployment of an advanced four-legged robotic dog with artificial intelligence to track the movement of wild animals in the Seshachalam forest ranges, a TTD spokesman said on Friday.HT ImageOn Thursday, TTD additional executive officer Ch Venkaiah Chowdary, accompanied by officials, reviewed the performance of the quadruped robotic dog at Sri Padmavathi Guest House, Tirumala.The delegation examined the robot’s suitability for surveillance in difficult or hazardous terrain where human access is limited. “The idea of introducing the robot is to prevent human-animal conflicts along the trekking route to Tirumala passing through the forest range,” the spokesman said.He said the usage of advanced robotic technology would help the TTD realtime monitoring of wildlife movements and enhance devotee safety in forest areas around Tirumala.According to an official release from the TTD, the robot is equipped with optical and thermal imaging cameras, a 360 degrees LiDAR, multiple sensors and artificial intelligence. These features enable detection and tracking of wildlife under low-visibility conditions such as darkness or fog.“The AI system can classify large animals, humans, vehicles and domestic animals. On detecting wildlife movement, the system can send geo-tagged alerts and stream live video and thermal feeds to the control room and patrolling staff for immediate response,” the release said.The TTD wants to deploy the robotic dog in the sensitive areas including the forest stretches adjoining the Alipiri–Tirumala footpath, where early detection of leopards and other wildlife will help warn devotees and enable rapid deployment of forest, vigilance and security teams.“The feasibility of using the robot’s sound and light units to non-physically deter animals away from pilgrim areas was also examined to avoid direct human–wildlife confrontation,” the official release said, adding that the robot would be tested during the upcoming Tirumala Brahmotsavams to be held in September.However, the robot will not replace existing camera traps, foot patrols and forest surveillance but would only complement the existing surveillance system. “It can serve as a mobile monitoring asset that can be rapidly deployed to locations with high wildlife activity as required,” the release said.Analysis of video, thermal imagery and movement data collected by the robot is expected to improve understanding of wildlife patterns and inform better patrol scheduling and surveillance deployment in critical zones, it added.