India can be global hub of tech: PM at drone fest
NEW DELHI: Tech has played a major role in expanding the reach of services and schemes, and drones are fast becoming an integral part of this revolution, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday, reiterating his government’s big bet on a new technology he said will lead to “antyodaya” (welfare for all).
Modi was addressing the opening session of the Bharat Drone Mahotsav, 2022 exhibition at Delhi’s Pragati Maidan, where he said that a range of sectors from agriculture, to health care, to defence, to disaster management, to entertainment stand to benefit from these devices.
“It’s my dream to see every farm equipped with drones,” he said, billing them as one of the centrepieces of the government’s focus on using technology for welfare.
“In the past, technological inventions were considered a reserve of only the elite classes. Today, we are making technology available for the masses,” he added during an event where he also met “Kisan drone” pilots – farmers who received their certificates after being trained on how to operate these devices.
“Promotion of drone technology is another medium of advancing our commitment to good governance and ease of living. In the form of drones, we have got a smart tool that is going to be part and parcel of common people’s lives,” Modi said, citing the example of how drones were used for deliveries of Covid-19 vaccines in some regions.
“Drone is the idea whose time has come in India,” said Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia. “Though drones fly up in the sky, they reach every interior village of the country,” he added.
Scindia added that the sector was set for a boom in India. “It is estimated that the drone industry will reach ₹15,000 crore turnover by the year 2026. Today, there are 270 drone start-ups in India,” he said.
On August 26, last year, a little over a month after Scindia was appointed the aviation minister, the government announced a complete reset of its policy on drones, abandoning regulations that were seen as too stifling for the industry as well as users.
The new policy slashed away red tape, whittled down the number of forms and licenses to only a couple people, and brought in exemptions for certain sizes and uses from more cumbersome compliances.
“Till a few months ago, there were many restrictions on the use of drones. In a short period, we removed these restrictions and have also come out with PLI (performance-linked incentive) schemes to ensure we progress towards creating an ecosystem of drone manufacturing,” Modi said.
The Bharat Drone Mahotsav is being held on May 27 and 28 and the government said in a statement that over 70 exhibitors are displaying drones for various use-cases, including air taxi prototypes and quadcopters to help farmers.
ON EASE OF LIVING
“Promotion of drone technology is another medium of advancing our commitment to good governance and ease of living. In the form of drones, we have got a smart tool that is going to be part and parcel of common people’s lives.”
ON DRONE USE BY FARMERS
“It’s my dream to see every farm equipped with drones…Few types of pulse crops grow very tall and it gets cumbersome for farmers to water and spray pesticides on them. Hence, the production of pulse crops is expected to increase with the use of drones, as the process will get easier.”
— NARENDRA MODI, Prime Minister