At present, UAVs with High end multi-spectral cameras of international make are priced at Rs 15 lakhs and above
Paras Aerospace, a subsidiary of Paras Defence and Space Technologies Limited, has announced that it will shortly unveil an indigenously developed affordable multi-spectral camera for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for applications in agriculture, urban development and forest survey. The company is led by Pankaj Akula, an Ex- Principal Scientist in Aerospace with various distinctions including the Best Scientist Award from National Aerospace Laboratories and a Gold Medal from IIT Kanpur.
“UAVs have wider applications in the industrial and civilian sectors beyond the traditional military sector. Today, UAV-based services are used in highway mapping, urban planning, construction monitoring, maintenance of airports, dams, energy sector, forestry, and plant Inspection. In fact, UAV-based services can be extended to even the farm sector to assist farmers. However, the costs are still high. Hence, we are indigenously developing Agri cameras at an estimated sale price of less than Rs 3 lakhs per unit,” noted Akula.
At present, UAVs with High end multi-spectral cameras of international make are priced at INR 15 lakhs and above. Paras has embarked on a mission to reduce the selling price by INR 12 lakhs by indigenously developing the multi-spectral cameras to ensure that they are used by a wide range of consumers, including farmers.
Paras Defence and Space Technologies Limited has extensive experience in optics and opto-mechanical assemblies, working for various projects of ISRO, BEL and DRDO. Satellite Imagery is a source that is being used for Agri mapping but the limitations associated with Pricing for higher resolution images, and cloud coverage limit the full utility. Paras is offering an affordable alternative aerial mapping using UAVs for Agri Applications that can be flown under the clouds with higher resolution using low-cost multi-spectral cameras.
“The government intends to make India the drone capital of the world. We want to play a significant role in this initiative. We also believe in Aatma Nirbhar Bharat to cater to the local and International market. Our products will be shortly available in the market,” Pankaj added.