The initiative targets a wide range of encroachments, from makeshift roadside shops and illegally parked vehicles to construction materials dumped along highways
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is deploying an innovative combination of drones and artificial intelligence to identify and clear encroachments along the country’s national highways. The new method has already led to the detection of more than a thousand unauthorised structures and obstructions across Maharashtra.
The initiative targets a wide range of encroachments, from makeshift roadside shops and illegally parked vehicles to construction materials dumped along highways. These obstructions have been a persistent challenge for the NHAI, often causing significant delays in major road construction and widening projects.
Under the new system, high-frequency drones are flown from moving vehicles to capture real-time aerial footage of the highways. This data is then fed into an AI system, which automatically analyses the images to flag potential encroachments. These flagged sites are subsequently verified through physical surveys before action is taken.
According to NHAI officials, this technological approach has significantly improved the efficiency of the clearance process. Since the beginning of the year, drone surveys on key stretches in Maharashtra, including the Pune–Solapur and Shirdi–Ahmednagar routes, have resulted in the issuance of 1,620 notices. Of these, 1,609 encroachments have been successfully removed with the cooperation of local district administrations.
The use of drones provides irrefutable photographic evidence, which is then passed to local authorities to facilitate swift action. This streamlined process is now being replicated in other states, with the ultimate goal of speeding up infrastructure projects and enhancing commuter safety across India’s expansive highway network.
