Forest dept ties up with Nasscom for data analysis

The Forest department has agreed to share its data for analysis and digitisation by Nasscom.

This is the first time any government department has tied up with Nasscom (National Association of Software and Services).

The department has partnered with Centre of Excellence for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (CoE-DSAI) of Nasscom and the department of IT-BT, to analyse data on procurement, auction and stock of timber in depots across the state.

Brijesh Kumar Dikshit, additional principal chief conservator of forests, Forest Research Management, told DH, “They approached us and since we had the data, we have given it to them for analysis. According to our data, we have sold eight lakh to nine lakh lots of timber from 2013 to December 1, 2018. We have given them a list of questions to be answered so that we can improve,” he said.

Through initial internal analysis, it has been found that the Forest department has 1,400 registered bulk purchasers, which include sawmills and companies.

Apart from this, there are many individuals and other types of purchasers. There is a need to understand customer behaviour and what type of wood is required in which season and the quantity required.

Initial analysis shows that teak, Lagerstroemia lanceolata (Nandi), honne, acacia auriculiformis (Auri) and Neem are in demand. It is found that demand for Rosewood has dropped. But the reasons are unknown. So the data analysis will help, Dikshit said.

The departments have held many meetings in this regard. The CoE-DSAI has shortlisted 60 startups from the B-tech sector, one of these will be finalised depending on the criteria they meet, said Subhash Gaitonde, programme director, Nasscom Centre for Excellence-Data Sciences and Artificial Intelligence.

There are 1,500 companies in biotechnology across India, registered with the Nasscom centre. Of this, 600 are in Karnataka and 90% of them are in Bengaluru.

Some of the information sought includes the behaviour of the price and the species, which class of timber fetches the best rate, which is the best time to dispose of timber and the best disposal methods. Data pertaining to co-relation of species, size and price is also sought for.