FSI Halts AI-Based Anavaran Deforestation Alert System

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The Forest Survey of India (FSI), the central authority responsible for tracking the country’s forest resources, has stopped issuing its fortnightly deforestation alerts through the AI-powered Anavaran portal. The system, which previously delivered near real-time warnings of forest cover loss using satellite imagery and machine learning, has not been updated since November 2025. Active monitoring through the platform reportedly ended in January 2026, bringing to a halt the regular alerts that were earlier sent to state authorities every two weeks for field verification and action.

Anavaran System and Its Purpose

The Anavaran Deforestation Alert System was launched in January 2024 to strengthen forest monitoring in India. It used satellite imagery and advanced analytical tools to detect changes in forest cover. By comparing “before” and “after” images, the portal identified newly cleared forest areas and transmitted precise location-based alerts to state forest departments. The system processed large volumes of satellite data through Google Earth Engine, enabling quicker identification of deforestation events. Although the portal functioned for nearly two years, officials have indicated that it was primarily implemented as a pilot initiative, and its performance is currently under review.

Technology Used in the Monitoring Platform

The monitoring system relied on multiple satellite data sources to ensure accuracy. Sentinel-2 optical satellite imagery served as the main dataset for identifying changes in vegetation cover. To maintain monitoring during cloudy weather or the monsoon season, the system also incorporated Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data. The detection algorithm compared current images with historical seasonal data to identify unusual changes in vegetation patterns that could indicate deforestation. This method allowed alerts to be generated at a relatively high spatial resolution of 10–20 metres, enabling more precise detection of forest loss.

Alert Data and State-Level Trends

Data available from the portal shows that between January 2024 and October 2025, the FSI issued 12,351 deforestation alerts, averaging about 561 alerts per month. The number of alerts typically rose between November and March, a period when deforestation activities often increase due to favourable weather conditions. Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, and Arunachal Pradesh recorded the highest number of alerts, followed by Nagaland, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Assam, and Tripura. Officials from several state forest departments have confirmed that they stopped receiving alerts after December 2025.

Global Context and Future Potential

Environmental experts have described the Anavaran system as an important step toward advanced satellite-based forest monitoring in India. Comparable initiatives exist globally, such as Terra-I, a deforestation monitoring system used in Latin America that also relies on remote sensing data to generate alerts. However, Anavaran provided higher spatial resolution imagery compared to Terra-I’s 250-metre resolution, allowing for more detailed monitoring. Experts believe that with further improvements and feedback from state agencies, technology-driven platforms like Anavaran could play a significant role in strengthening forest conservation and enabling early detection of deforestation in India.

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