The Health and Family Welfare Minister of India Mansukh Mandaviya on Monday launched the Indian Council of Medical Research’s (ICMR) vaccine delivery model --Drone Response and Outreach in North East (i-Drone) to facilitate COVID-19 vaccine delivery to tough and hard-to-reach terrains of the Northeast through drones.
The federal health minister said this is for the first time that a 'Made in India' drone has been used in South Asia to transport COVID-19 vaccines over an aerial distance of 15 km in 12-15 minutes. The drone covered the distance from Bishnupur district hospital to Loktak Lake, Karang Island in the Indian state of Manipur. The actual road distance between these locations is 26 km.
“We can use drones in delivering important life-saving medicines, collecting blood samples. This technology can also be used in critical situations. This technology may prove a game-changer in addressing the challenges in health care delivery, particularly health supplies in difficult areas,” Mandaviya said.
ICMR conducted an initial study in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Technology (Kanpur), the country’s premier engineering institution, to test the capacity of drones to carry and transfer vaccines safely. The study was conducted in Manipur, Nagaland and Andaman and Nicobar.
These studies provided promising results on the basis of which the Federal Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and other regulatory authorities granted permission to fly drones beyond the visual line of sight.