Drone Destination: India's largest drone trainer and leading Drone-as-a-Service company files DRHP with NSE Emerge

Drone Destination Limited, India's trailblazing Drone Pilot Training and Drone-as-a-Service (DAAS) company, has made a significant announcement with the filing of its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) on May 20th, 2023. The company, recognized as the country's first DGCA-authorised Drone Training Organization under the new Drone Rules 2021, is gearing up to list its shares on the prestigious SME Platform of the National Stock Exchange (NSE Emerge).

Narnolia Financial Services Limited has been appointed as the lead manager to the issue, with Longview Research and Advisory and PLS Capital Consultants Pvt Ltd serving as the Advisors to the Issue.

Under the visionary leadership of a distinguished management team boasting extensive civil aviation experience, Drone Destination has become the go-to choice for esteemed clients seeking cutting-edge drone services. With an impressive range of offerings that include comprehensive drone pilot training and advanced aerial solutions for surveying, mapping, and surveillance, the company has earned the trust of industry giants such as Reliance, Tata, Airbus, ITC, Aditya Birla Group, and Bayer.

What truly sets Drone Destination apart is its unwavering commitment to regulatory compliance and industry expertise. The company's management team actively engages with government committees related to aviation, ensuring unmatched knowledge and adherence to evolving drone regulations. This dedication has positioned Drone Destination as a trusted leader in the drone industry, sought after for its unparalleled professionalism and adherence to safety protocols.

22/05/2023 ZeeBiz

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Garuda Aerospace and Naini Aerospace, partners to scale manufacturing of ‘Make in India Drones’

In a massive step towards boosting the manufacturing of indigenous drones in India, Garuda Aerospace and Naini Aerospace engineering limited (NAeL), a wholly owned subsidiary of HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence has signed a joint development partnership. The joint partnership will enable Garuda to manufacture Advanced Precision Drones on Indian Soil for various applications. The drones will be able to carry a payload of around 25 kg.

Speaking on the development, Agnishwar Jayaprakash, Founder and CEO, Garuda Aerospace said, “Our Hon’ble Prime Minister’s Vision of achieving the milestone of 1 lakh Made in India drones by 2024 is well on track. Our partnership with Naini Aerospace engineering limited (NAeL) (a wholly owned subsidiary of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) is a natural next step for us. Our Drone Yatra has also been a grand success and we have pre-booked over 7000 drones at Rs. 4.5 lakhs each. Partnerships with Government PSUs are critical given the knowledge and experience they possess to scale up production. We will continue to stay focused, and partner with industry leaders that will help us achieve our PM’s vision.”

Furthermore, Garuda Aerospace recently partnered with BEML at Aero India for drone manufacturing at their Mysore facility and initiated a massive indigenization campaign. The company has also collaborated with 120 local suppliers with the objective of reducing reliance on foreign imports of drone parts, components, and UAV subsystems.

22/05/2023 Kanchan Nath/Travel Daily Media

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Three-day ban on paragliding at Bir-Billing

Palampur: The state government today banned tandem and solo paragliding and any other flights at Bir-Billing in Kangra district till May 19 in view of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) matches at Dharamsala.

The government has also banned flying of drones and hot-air balloons. However, drones can be used in extraordinary circumstances for security reasons.

A government official said that there would be no paragliding at Bir-Billing and other places in Kangra during this period. Deputy Commissioner, Kangra, Nipun Jindal has already issued orders in this regard.

The official said that tourists had been asked not to take any chances and stringent action would be taken in the case of any violation. The Paragliding Association in Bir Billing had been directed to implement the orders of the District Magistrate strictly.

17/05/2023 Tribune

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Arms smuggling via drones a challenge for security forces

Amritsar: In the absence of any technology that could counter the air penetration from across the India-Pakistan border, the smuggling of narcotics and arms through drones has been the biggest challenge for the security agencies

The emerging trend of terrorist-gangster-smuggler-criminal nexus, sensitive issues like drug trafficking, capacity-building in the area of counter-drone measures and fast exchange of actionable information on real-time basis, was deliberated upon during the joint coordination meeting of senior Punjab Police officers of the border districts of Punjab and senior BSF officers organised at BSF Campus, Khasa, Amritsar.

Arpit Shukla, Special Director General (Law and Order) agreed that smuggling through drones was indeed a challenge and that a mutual strategy in collaboration with the BSF was being devised to counter this menace.

Shukla said that the focus of the meeting was to have a seamless multi-level coordination between the police and the BSF, in addition to roping in the local population of the border belt.

On the lines of the BSF, the Punjab Police too has announced an award of Rs 1 lakh to an informer who would expose those indulging in smuggling through drones. Shukla claimed that the BSF’s exercise of awarding the informers has yielded results.

Punjab shares an approximately 553 km of international border with Pakistan comprising the districts of Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Ferozepur.

In the absence of any technological counter plan, the security agencies are dependent only on troop alertness in detecting the “buzzing sounds” of the drones.

17/05/2023 GS Paul/Tribune

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India’s ‘Borrowed’ MQ-9 Reaper Drone Keeps An Eye On Chinese Activities Over Remote Myanmar Islands

Amid emerging concerns over suspicious infrastructure developments on Myanmar’s Coco Islands, an MQ-9 drone, leased by the Indian Navy from the US, has been observed conducting surveillance operations in the vicinity of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The Coco Islands have recently captured significant attention after satellite imagery revealed ongoing construction activities.

These developments have sparked worries that China, with whom Myanmar has developed closer ties following the February 2021 coup, could utilize the area for intelligence gathering on Indian military activities through espionage or intelligence collaboration.

The latest report from IndiaToday suggests that India is actively monitoring suspicious activities in the Coco Islands. 

The report, citing open-source data, indicated that a drone, possibly the ‘MQ-9B Sea Guardian,’ conducted an approximately four-hour survey of the Coco Islands on April 12. 

This activity coincided with a recent visit by Myanmar’s top military leader to the neighboring Coco Islands.

Furthermore, aviation data supports the claim that a Fokker-70 aircraft from the Myanmar Air Force landed on the Coco Islands on April 9. Local media reports have speculated that the aircraft was carrying General Min Aung Hlaing, the leader of the military coup in 2021.

During his visit, the General was quoted by local media, emphasizing the need for officials to take proactive measures against illegal fishing, urging them to enforce relevant laws in the waters of Myanmar.

12/05/2023 Ashish Dangwal/EurAsianTimes

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Blood delivery by drones across India may soon be reality, says official after ICMR's successful trial run

Blood delivery through drones can soon be expanded to the whole country, a senior official said after the Indian Council of Medical Research successfully conducted a trial run of blood bag delivery by drones under its iDrone initiative on Thursday. The initiative was in continuance with the national mission of expanding the drone ecosystem in India. The 'i-DRONE' was first used by ICMR during the COVID-19 pandemic for distributing vaccines to hard-to-reach areas.

"Today, we are transporting blood and blood-related products which are supposed to be kept at a low temperature. After the experiment, we found that not only can we maintain the temperature but there was also no damage to the products transported.

"We sent another sample through an ambulance and if there are no differences in the samples sent using the two modes then drones will be used all over India," said Dr Rajiv Bahl, the director general of ICMR.

He also said that "clarity on challenge mapping and identifying the possible solutions can be achieved by developing indigenous capacities in research and introduction of innovations and technologies in the mainstream".

"With digitisation, efficient manufacturing of vaccines and development of a rapid delivery mechanism, India achieved 90 per cent coverage within a year. The boost of technology is an accelerator which is gradually pushing India towards achieving the status of being a developed nation," he added.

11/05/2023 PTI/Economic Times

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