Garuda Aerospace, one of the top drone start-ups in the country and one of the beneficiaries of the PLI scheme, is collaborating with Elbit Systems, an internationally recognised high-end technology company, to provide Skylark 3 UAS drones to commercial and government agencies.
These high-end drones will be outfitted with advanced sensors and will be used for large-scale mining projects for steel plants and coal mines such as BCCL and Coal India, as well as NTPC facilities across the country.
According to the company, Drone Shakti projects will also be areas of joint technology and execution development.
Garuda and Elbit Systems, an Israeli company, have agreed to collaborate on the design, construction, and customization of unmanned aerial vehicles for a variety of applications in this sector. It was said that these superior drones can operate for approximately six to nine hours, increasing cost-efficiency and endurance.
Skylark 3 will primarily be used for Survey of India projects involving large-scale surveying and mapping of villages as part of the Swamitva Scheme, which was launched in April last year after the successful completion of the pilot phase of the scheme in nine states.
It is noteworthy that this scheme is considered a reformative step toward establishing clear ownership of property in rural inhabited areas, with the mapping of land parcels using drone technology and the provision of a ‘Record of Rights’ to village household owners, as well as the issuance of legal ownership cards (Property cards/Title deeds) to the property owners.
Garuda Aerospace, the most successful company with Swamitva projects so far, has recently completed the mapping of over 7,000 villages for the government in just one year at a low cost.
Additionally, it should be noted that this indigenous company based in Tamil Nadu has recently received the necessary approvals from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), making it the country’s 31st Remote Pilot Training Organisation (RPTO).
However, the latest partnership between the Indian and Israeli companies which was announced at the Defence Expo will now look into executing a massive order book of Rs 150 crore in a shorter period of time, which is expected to increase Garuda Aerospace’s revenue in the mapping service vertical by more than 1000%.
Agnishwar Jayaprakash, founder and CEO of Garuda Aerospace, said: “We have always been known to provide high tech multiple drone-related services and this co-efficient partnership will transcend into being India’s most valuable start-up, scale and aim to fulfil the multiple requirements for commercial UAVs usage.”
“We also signed a significant MOU with Lockheed Martin, after which we unveiled our new Delta Wing Tactical Drone named Vajra,” Jayaprakash added.
Regarding the recent partnership, Ziv Timor, who is the Senior Director at Elbit UAVs business unit stated that Elbit and Garuda can respond effectively to India’s growing requirements for civilian UAVs usage.
However, Vishal Saurav, CEO & Co-founder of VFLYX India, spoke to News18 and said that bringing advanced technology from foreign will be adding to the overall performance.
“Additionally, it will enhance user experience, which in turn will be creating a more competitive environment for the other Indigenous drone companies to strive for and improvise on their offerings,” he noted.
“We are also exploring associations with foreign companies to bring the best of the technology in India. A formal announcement will be done in near future soon.”
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