BEL developing AI tool to analyse terror activity

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 15

With the use of artificial intelligence (AI) gaining importance in the security field, public-sector giant Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) is developing an AI-based tool for analysis of terrorist activities.

The tool, sources said, would be used in sifting and segregating raw information as well as to assist in generating intelligence assessments, decision-making and operational planning. The use of AI in counter-terrorism also assumes significance with the growing use of social media and online platforms by radical elements as well as other hostile state agencies to create social and communal unrest and incite violence.

While several government ministries and departments, including the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Department of Information Technology, are involved in developing e-tools and, the Ministry of Defence recently made it mandatory for defence public sector units to focus on the development and use of AI in various combat and non-combat domains.

Besides developing terrorist activity analysis tool, BEL is also involved in developing other AI-associated platforms, including a robot for border surveillance and human facial recognition concepts. According to recent reports, BEL is allocating about Rs 50 crore annually for research in the AI domain.

As far as the use of AI for intelligence and counter-terrorism is concerned, sources said AI enables a much higher volume of data to be processed and analysed, identify “hot items”, co-relate information and perceive patterns in the data that could otherwise be beyond the capacity of human interpretation.