Drone manufacturer Garuda Aerospace has become India’s first drone startup to receive both Type Certification and RTPO approvals by DGCA for their indigenously designed Kisan Drones. DGCA Type certification is provided on the basis of the quality check of the drones and is issued after a rigorous testing process. In India, the government introduced Type certification in August 2021 under Drone Rules. “Our drones will benefit farmers and agri-entrepreneurs by playing a major role in impacting the farmers’ lives and building new-age careers for young Indians within the drone industry,” Garuda Aerospace Founder and CEO Agnishwar Jayaprakash said.
What are ‘Kisan’ drones?
The Made in India ‘Kisan’ drones are particularly developed for agricultural purposes such as reducing crop loss, crop health monitoring, yield measurement, and crop loss mitigation with the latest manufacturing capacities. Post the approvals, this drone is now eligible for Rs 10 lakh unsecured loans from Agri Infrastructure Fund at a 5 per cent interest and 50-100% subsidy from the Centre. Priced at Rs 4.50 lakhs, the ‘Kisan’ drone is India’s most affordable advanced automated Agri Drone that comes under the 25 kg small category.
The road ahead
According to the startup, the approvals will now “lead to creating job opportunities for the youth in the near future and a vision of training 1 lakh drone pilots in the next 2 years”. “We are powered and blessed with strong demands of manufacturing 5000 drones in the next 5 months catering to many opportunities,” Jayaprakash further said.
Garuda Aerospace recently commenced its $30 million Series A round at a $250 million valuation. Former Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has invested and is also the company’s Brand Ambassador. MS Dhoni has recently launched a drone named Droni. Garuda Aerospace boasts of a drone fleet of 400 drones and a well-trained team of over 500 pilots across 26 different cities.
