Covid-19: Drone-based sanitising now in Bengaluru

Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Friday flagged off drone-based sanitisation of public places in Bengaluru.

Chennai-based startup Garuda Aerospace will operate these drones to sanitise Gandhinagar, Chamrajpet, Shivajinagar, Shanthinagar, CV, Ramanagar, Sarvagna Nagar, Mahadevapura and Rajajinagar.

The company had earlier deployed drones to sanitise other Indian cities and also to aid the NDRF in flood relief and rescue operations.

It was Bangalore Central MP PC Mohan who reached out to the startup.

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“For the first time in India, drone delivery of Covid vaccines will undergo feasibility analysis and field trials in Karnataka,” Mohan said, according to a release. The trials will be monitored by the health department and the Covid-19 task force.

The startup has developed a highly-specialized drone - The White Knight - that will be used for vaccine delivery trials. This drone can carry 35-40 kg of payload. “The White Knight drone has been in the R&D phase for the last two years to execute aerial delivery of emergency medicines, food and packages. Trials were conducted during the lockdown last year in Tamil Nadu and real-time implementation of the drones delivering Covid-19 vaccines looks promising,” the release said.