India Uses AI to Identify Stray Cows by Their Noses

Traffic jams caused by wandering cows could soon become a thing of the past in one of India's fastest-growing cities, thanks to an innovative AI system that reads bovine nose prints.

Ahmedabad, a bustling city of over eight million people in Gujarat, is testing new technology that identifies stray cattle using existing street cameras and artificial intelligence. The system works by analyzing each cow's unique nose pattern, similar to how fingerprints identify humans.

Right now, municipal workers spend hours manually checking stray cattle using microchips and RFID tags when they're spotted on camera. The new AI model will do this work instantly, scanning nose patterns along with facial features and distinctive markings to match wandering cows with their registered owners in the city database.

The timing couldn't be better. Stray cattle regularly block traffic and cause accidents at major intersections across Ahmedabad. Around 110,000 cows in the city already wear RFID tags with their information stored in municipal records.

The AI Centre of Excellence in Gandhinagar developed the project under Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel's smart city initiative. Cameras at 130 major junctions will feed real-time images into the system, creating a citywide network that can spot and identify stray animals within seconds.

A private agency is currently building the deep-learning model and will present it to a steering committee soon. Once approved, the system could transform how the city manages its urban livestock population.

The Ripple Effect

This isn't just about clearing roads faster. When cows wander away from home, owners often struggle to locate them for days. The new system will send alerts within minutes, reducing stress for both animals and their caretakers.

The technology also creates a model other Indian cities can follow. Stray cattle management challenges aren't unique to Ahmedabad, and a proven AI solution could help dozens of urban areas across the country improve safety and traffic flow.

Beyond cattle, the project demonstrates how existing infrastructure like security cameras can solve persistent problems when paired with smart technology. No massive new installations required, just better use of what's already there.

Gujarat's experiment proves that even age-old urban challenges have modern solutions waiting to be discovered.