Drones for Vaccine Delivery: India, a country that is already leading the world in solar energy and renewable technology, has just launched new drone technology to deliver vaccines. Drones will deliver life-saving vaccines outside the visible line of sight in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Manipur, and Nagaland.
The Civil Aviation Ministry said on Monday it has granted conditional permission to the ICMR (Indian Council for Medical Research) to use drones in these states.
Drones can carry up to 2kg payloads and will be used for delivering essential medicines such as anti-snake venom or antibiotics that cannot be transported by road due to lack of infrastructure or other impediments like bad weather.
This revolutionary drone technology will help save the lives of millions who die every year from diseases that can be prevented with appropriate vaccines. Drones have the potential to save many more lives in India and globally as well.
India will not be a follower but a leader when it comes to health care delivery using drones, India Minister for Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia said at Saturday’s launch ceremony.
The Indian Government has also announced that they are investing over $15 million in drone technology and that they will soon be looking to use them for commercial purposes.
As we head into the future, drones are going to play a larger role than ever before and it is extremely exciting to see India leading this global revolution!
Drones for Vaccine Delivery, Both the organizations, the IIT and the ICMR, have been granted conditional exemption from Drone Rules, 2021, the statement said.
“This exemption shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the said airspace clearance and shall be valid for a period of one year from the date of approval of the said airspace clearance or until further orders, whichever is earlier,” the statement noted.
Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia launched the first-of-its-kind ‘Medicines from the Sky’ project in Vikarabad, Telangana, two days ago, in which drones will deliver drugs and vaccines to rural areas.
The medicine delivery system has been developed jointly by the Hyderabad-based Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
The medicine-carrying drones can cover a distance ranging between 10 to 40 km in an hour with a speed up to 80 km/hour. It can carry up to 500 gm worth of medicine per sortie capable of running 30 minutes per day, five days a week. One medicine can be delivered in around 5 minutes.
Drones for Vaccine Delivery, The medicine-carrying drones are GPS-enabled, the medicine will be dropped at a pre-determined space with coordinates. The medicine supplies would cost between Rs 10 to 15 per km depending on the type of drone used for medicine delivery.
The medicine delivery system will provide “reliable” health services where there is no road access or hospitals nearby, said CDAC Director P Srikumar Rao who was also part of the project.
He said that they plan to expand its scope across India soon followed by other countries in Africa and Latin America.
