Dunzo to test drone delivery of medicines in Telangana – Times of India

Bengaluru-based delivery startup Dunzo is gearing up to test deliveries of medicines and Covid vaccine with drones. The Google-backed startup is part of the ‘Medicine from the Sky’ initiative by Telangana government and the World Economic Forum. Dunzo did not reveal any tentative timeline as to when drone deliveries of medicines will start in Telangana as the startup is awaiting regulatory approvals.
“This project is one of the first such programs in the country where multiple drones would fly BVLOS to establish their value proposition for the healthcare supply chain. The vision is to ensure healthcare equity for rural areas,” said Jayesh Ranjan, IAS, principal secretary, ITE&C department, Government of Telangana.
Dunzo will be preparing its drone-based logistics using its existing delivery network in Telangana. The ‘Medicine from the Sky’ initiative is aimed at cutting delivery times and also reaching far-flung areas of the state easily. As for drone deliveries, the government recently passed a set of guidelines for flying drones in India as part of the Digital Sky initiative.
There’s a range of approval that is required for drone deliveries which includes permissions from Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Defense, Indian Air Force, Wireless Planning and Coordination Wing, DoT, Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, Airport Authority of India and the local police office.
Every drone flying legally in the sky needs to have a UIN, a unique identification number issued by DGCA except for Nano drones weighing less than 250 grams.