Page 38 - 20 Booming Logistics Companies in India 2021

and improved healthcare access by
he Civil Aviation Ministry
has permitted the Telan-
gana government to use
drones for experimental
delivery of vaccines using
beyond the visual line of
sight drone flights. India
Thas been hit hard by a
second wave of the novel coronavirus
infection, and hospitals in several states
are reeling under a severe shortage of
vaccines, oxygen, drugs, medical equip- banks to Primary Health Centres (PHCs),
ment, and beds.
On April 30, the ministry had permitted
the Telangana government to use drones
for experimental delivery of COVID-19
vaccines within the visual line of sight. Dart has always been surrounded with the
In a statement, the ministry said it has
granted a conditional exemption to
the Telangana government from the
Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Rules,
2021, for “conducting experimental
delivery of vaccines” using drones. The
trials may commence by the end of May,
it added.
On April 22, the ministry had
permitted the Indian Council of Medical
Research (ICMR) to conduct a feasibility
study on using drones to deliver the
COVID-19 vaccine.
The official statement noted that
the development is aimed at achieving
dual objectives of faster vaccine delivery
ensuring primary healthcare delivery at
the citizen’s doorstep. Aerial delivery
will also help in limiting human exposure
to COVID-19 prone areas and will ensure
access to healthcare to the last mile,
especially in remote areas.
However, one of the conditions for
the trial remains the maximum permitted
height for drone operations to be at 400
feet Above Ground Level (AGL). The state
government also needs to establish a
Single Point Coordinator (SPC) at Sham-
shabad ATC to ensure coordination with
ATC during the flight trials.
Blue Dart Med-Express Drone flights will
deploy an immersive delivery model to
optimise the current healthcare logistics
within Telangana
Blue Dart, a leading express logistics
service provider, on Thursday said it
formed Blue Dart Med-Express Consor-
tium with a mission of revolutionising
the delivery of vaccines and emergency
medical supplies to the remotest parts of
India using drones.
Blue Dart Med-Express Drone flights
will deploy an immersive delivery model
to optimise the current healthcare logis-
tics within Telangana.
The model will enable deliveries
from district medical stores and blood
Community Health Centres (CHCs), Blood
Storage Units & further from PHCs/CHCs
to Central Diagnostic laboratories, it said.
Balfour Manuel, Managing Director,
Blue Dart said, “As an organisation Blue
technology of the future. It is this ability
that has helped us to not only withstand
the pandemic but thrive with growth.
While we reach out to over 35,000
locations across the country, the current
situation calls for a much deeper penetra-
tion of vaccines.”
Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary,
IT and Industries, said “Telangana is one
of the most proactive states looking to
adopt emerging technologies, and the
‘Medicine from the Sky project using
drones is in line with the same principles.
This project is one of the first such
programs in the country...The vision is to
ensure healthcare equity for rural areas.”
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