'Drone city' in Andhra Pradesh: All about Chandrababu Naidu's ambitious project

Chandrababu Naidu

Speaking at Davos, Switzerland, Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu shared the details of his ambitious 'drone city' project. In an interview to NDTV, the TDP chief said the project will propel the state to the forefront of drone technology and innovation.

Making a marked distinction between the usage of drones, satellites and CCTVs, Naidu said drones can be used more efficiently in a range of sector spanning from agriculture to policing. Laying out its use in agriculture, the chief minister said the drones will help in identifying  pests with greater precision and also in the application of pesticide. "Drone technology will enable administrators and policy makers to integrate real-time analytics with everyday application," remarked Naidu.

Naidu, in October last year earmarked 300 acres for Drone Hub in Kurnool district and announced the programme to train 35,000 drone pilots, at the inaugural of Amaravati Drone Summit.

Highlighting the transformative potential of drones, especially in agriculture, infrastructure, and healthcare, the Chief Minister pointed out that drones were effectively used to deliver food and drinking water to stranded residents during the recent Vijayawada floods. “While other countries use drones for warfare, we will use them for peace and security by monitoring criminal activities and ensuring public safety,” he remarked.

Give an example of how the drone technology will help the government, he said earlier the state government had to deploy many personnel for police patrolling. Now, with the drone technology, the dispensation can deploy two-three drones and they will patrol. "The personnel will intervene and go to the site when needed, Naidu told NDTV.

"Many other similar applications can be developed in the area of health, education, medicine. When there is a flood, I cannot reach every home. I can send relief material using drones. India has some distance to go for drone applications, which is why I want to prepare use cases." observed Naidu.