Cabinet nod for Rs 1,261 cr scheme to provide drones to 15,000 women SHGs for 2 years

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a drone scheme of Rs 1,261cr that will help 15,000 women Self Help Groups. Union I&B minister Anurag Thakur said at a press conference that the SHGs would be able to provide the drones as rental services to farmers for agricultural purposes.

The Cabinet also approved an outlay of Rs 24,104 crore for the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan under which tribal communities will be provided amenities like roads, houses, water connection, mobile towers etc. that will be provided by nine line ministries.

The government in a note said that appropriate clusters where usage of drones is economically feasible will be identified, and 15,000 women SHGs in various states will be identified for the providing drones. The Centre will provide financial assistance of 80 per cent of the cost of the drone and its accessories, which will be capped at Rs 8 lakh. The women can raise the rest of the amount from the Cluster Level Federation (CLFs) of SHGs as a loan under the National Agriculture Infra Financing Facility (AIF) which attracts an interest of 3 per cent.

The SHG Clusters will send a representative for a 15-day training which will include a 5-day mandatory drone pilot training and an additional 10-day training for agriculture purpose of nutrient and pesticide application. The women will be encouraged to advocate the use of nano fertilisers such as Nano Urea and Nano DAP. The move could yield an additional income of at least Rs 1 lakh per annum.

The Cabinet also announced the PM JANMAN, which was announced in the 2023-24 Budget to improve socio-economic conditions of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs). “An amount of Rs.15,000 crore will be made available to implement the Mission in the next three years under the Development Action Plan for the Scheduled Tribes (DAPST),” the finmin said in this year’s Budget speech.

Under the scheme, beneficiaries will be provided Rs 4.9 lakh for pucca houses, 8000 kilometers of roads, piped water supply, community water supply, 10 medical mobile units per district with medicines, and construction of hostels for children. In addition to that, vocational education and training, construction of 1000 multipurpose centres across the country, solar lighting, etc., will also be provided.