Mumbai, July 18, 2025: ideaForge Technology Limited, India’s leading UAV technology company, successfully deployed four advanced Artificial Intelligence-enabled Q6V2 UAVs to support crowd monitoring and public safety efforts during the Pandharpur Wari, one of Maharashtra’s largest religious pilgrimages. The deployment was carried out in collaboration with ideaForge’s channel partner M/s Bluesky Amida Pvt. Ltd. and under the guidance of Atul Kulkarni, SP Solapur Rural.

Wari is one of the biggest religious events in Maharashtra, a 21-day padayatra from Alandi (near Pune), where Sant Dnyaneshwar’s samadhi is located, to Pandharpur for darshan of Lord Panduranga (an incarnation of Vishnu). This centuries-old tradition has continued for over 700 years and culminates on Ashadhi Ekadashi, which falls on July 6 this year, drawing close to 27.5 lakh devotees to Pandharpur. The Pandharpur Wari attracts lakhs of devotees to the city, often resulting in high-density gatherings across locations such as the Chandrabhaga riverbed, Bhakti Sagar area, and temple premises. To improve situational awareness and support crowd control, ideaForge’s UAVs were stationed at key points including Dagdi Pul, Maha Dwar, Namdev Payri, Walwant EOC, Paschim Dwar, and the 65-acre Bhakti Sagar zone. Drone operations commenced at 4:00 AM on July 6, with seven flights conducted throughout the day.

The UAVs captured real-time aerial visuals that were streamed live to the Integrated Command and Control Centre and simultaneously made accessible to relevant officials through the BlueFire Live!  application. This enabled faster decision-making and more coordinated on-ground responses during peak movement hours.

In addition to live feeds, the drone footage was processed through an Artificial IntelligenceI-powered analytics system developed in partnership with Skylark. The AI engine, trained on diverse flight angles and elevations, estimated crowd density, tracked movement patterns, and flagged areas of concern. This analysis helped authorities optimize personnel deployment, ease congestion, and ensure safe passage for devotees across the pilgrimage route. By delivering accurate, real-time intelligence and enabling predictive crowd management, the drone and AI setup played a crucial role in preventing overcrowding, reducing safety risks, and maintaining public order throughout the event.

“The successful deployment of drone technology at the Pandharpur Wari highlights its growing role in managing large-scale public events. With Pandharpur hosting four major yatras annually, Ashadhi, Kartiki, Maghi, and Chaitri, this model presents a scalable solution for future crowd and safety management efforts. This operation marks another milestone in ideaForge’s mission to extend its high-performance UAV capabilities from defence to critical civilian applications, demonstrating the potential of drones as essential tools for public safety, planning, and governance”, said Ashesh Mathur, Assistant General Manager – Sales, ideaForge Technology Limited.