DGCA Grants Garuda Aerospace Type Certification And RTPO Approval For Kisan Drones

Garuda Aerospace, an Indian drone manufacturer, announced on Wednesday that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has granted Type Certification and RTPO approvals for their Kisan Drones.

The DGCA Type certification is provided based on the quality of the drones and is issued following a rigorous testing process for the UAVs. The Indian government introduced the Type certification under drone rules in August 2021, and the historic dual DGCA approval validates Garuda's status as India's most valuable drone startup.

With the latest manufacturing capacities and robust technology backgrounds, the Made in India Kisan drones are specifically developed for agricultural purposes such as crop loss reduction, crop health monitoring, yield measurement, and mitigation.

"The elusive double certification by DGCA for Type and RPTO certification serves as evidence of our domestic drone manufacturing capabilities, which are made in India. We are energized and blessed with strong demands to manufacture 5000 drones in the next 5 months to meet a variety of opportunities. With the approvals, we are confident that the necessary skills will be utilized, resulting in significant sector growth. Our drones will also help farmers and agribusiness owners because they will improve farmers' lives and open up new drone industry job opportunities for young Indians." Garuda Aerospace founder and CEO Agnishwar Jayaprakash said.

Garuda Kisan Drone is now eligible for Rs 10 lakh unsecured loans from Agri Infrastructure Fund at 5% interest and 50-100% subsidy from the Government of India after receiving Type Certificate for the GA-AG model.

Garuda Kisan Drone, priced at Rs.4.50 lakhs, is an advanced automated Agri Drone with DGCA-approved Type Certification in the under 25kg small category.
The ICAL, KVKS, FMTTI, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, and several other government agricultural bodies will now be able to purchase high-tech made-in-India drones manufactured by Garuda Ace. This will result in job opportunities for youth soon, as well as a goal of training 1 lakh drone pilots in the next two years.

Former Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has also invested in the company and serves as its Brand Ambassador. MS Dhoni recently unveiled the “Droni” drone. Garuda Aerospace has a fleet of 400 drones and a well-trained team of over 500 pilots spread across 26 cities. Garuda Aerospace has been dubbed India's most valuable startup, and the company expects to become the country's first drone unicorn startup shortly, according to the statement.

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