Last year, when the pomegranates from orchards in Pune, Solpaur, Anshik and Ahilyanagar had turned red and heavy with the promise of a lucrative harvest, thieves seemed to know it too. They entered farms under the cover of darkness, picked the choicest fruit – prime quality Bhagwa variety pomegranates – and had disappeared with tons of produce that farmers had spent months nurturing.This year, the farmers are not taking any chances.As the pomegranate crop in parts of Pune and neighbouring districts entered its harvest window starting June this year, farmers from the affected areas were ready by installing CCTV cameras in their fields – some with night vision and some solar powered – not necessarily for the entire year, but specifically for those few weeks when the fruit is ripe and ready to be plucked.The shift marks a move from the traditional ‘rakhan’, in which farmers and villagers take turns to patrol orchards at night, to a more technology-driven form of crop protection.The increasing availability of relatively affordable cameras that can transmit live feeds to mobile phones has made it possible for farmers to keep an eye on their fields from their homes.For Sandeep Yelbhar, who witnessed a series of pomegranate thefts at his farm and in neighbouring areas last year, the camera has effectively become a night watchman that does not need to sit in the orchard.“Last year, there was theft at my farm and a series of them in the surrounding areas. When the pomegranates came to the stage where they were ready for harvest, I installed two CCTV cameras on my farm this year. This is the period when the risk of theft is highest. The cameras are connected to my mobile phone and also have motion detection. If there is any suspicious movement in front of the camera, my phone gives an alarm. Every two-three hours, either I or someone from my family wakes up and checks the camera feed to see if everything is alright,” Yelbhar said.The Indian Express reported last year that coordinated thefts of significant huge of high-value large-sized pomegranates were reported from Pune’s Shirur taluka, Sangola in Solapur district, Shrirampur in Ahilyanagar district, Deola in Nashik district in July and August earlier this year.The reason was very clear: The soaring prices of the pomegranate. The Bhagwa (which means saffron) variety of pomegranate is celebrated as the jewel of India’s pomegranate varieties — an opulent fruit with a rich saffron-red rind and arils that have deep ruby colour. The variety, which is also exported, fetches the highest market value and was specifically targeted by thieves across these places.Story continues below this adWhile some arrests of local accomplices were made in Pune and other places, no major arrests of masterminds were made.Maharashtra remains the one of country’s largest pomegranate producers, with production estimates for 2024-25 at about 1.25 million tonnes.In Sangola, Shirur and Deola farmers began taking turns to patrol their orchards after thefts were reported, continuing the night watch until their crops could be harvested.But for growers in leopard-prone areas, walking through orchards after dark brought another hazard.Suresh Kolhe, a farmer and former sarpanch from Shirur, has now opted for cameras to protect two valuable crops on his farm — pomegranates as well as grapes.Story continues below this ad“I have installed three CCTV cameras on my farm so that the pomegranate and grape crops can be monitored, particularly during the harvesting period. These cameras are solar powered and one of them has night vision,” Kolhe said.Rajaram Ovhal from Shindodi village who lost 800 kg ready to harvest pomegranate in July this year, regrets not installing the cameras before that. “I am going to install cameras before the next season.” Ovhal said.Ashok Magar, who owns an electronic appliances store in Shirur said, “Since last eight to nine months, the sale of CCTV cameras, especially the solar-powered CCTV cameras, has increased. A large number of farmers are buying these CCTV cameras. Some of them are also buying night vision cameras. The most sale that has happened from our area is of the solar-powered, which is accompanied by a solar panel and has a built-in storage, and it can also give a feed and alarm to the cell phone.”