Pushpak Drone Mission | 06 May 2025

Why in News? 

The central government has appointed the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) to lead the ‘Pushpak – National Mission on Drone Technology’, which promotes the development of indigenous drone technology across various sectors. 

 Key Points 

  • Overview of the Mission: 
    • The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched the ‘Pushpak – National Mission on Drone Technology’ with a total grant-in-aid of Rs 82.7 crore. 
    • Participating Institutes and Their Focus Areas: 
      • IIT Bombay has been appointed to lead the mission. It will focus on: 
        • Developing hybrid drones and indigenous processors. 
        • Creating Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) for disaster management, coastal monitoring, and specialised uses. 
        • Facilitating collaboration between academia and industry to drive innovation in next-gen drone technologies. 
      • Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI) Mumbai will focus on: 
        • Developing secure embedded systems and enhancing drone communication security. 
        • Establishing a dedicated drone security lab and forensic unit to: 
          • Track drone flight patterns within Indian airspace. 
          • Detecting and mitigating drone-related threats. 
          • Contribute to long-term cybersecurity solutions for drones. 
      • Other participating institutions include: 
        • CDAC-Thiruvananthapuram 
        • CDAC-Bengaluru 
        • IIT-Gandhinagar 
        • IISER-Bhopal 
        • Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education (Tamil Nadu) 
  • Mission Objectives and Strategic Vision: 
    • The Pushpak mission aims to make India self-reliant in drone technology through: 
      • Advanced research and development (R&D). 
      • Strategic partnerships with industry players. 
      • Real-world testing and rapid commercialisation of technologies. 
    • The mission will function under the oversight of a National Steering Committee (NSC), comprising senior government officials and domain experts. 
  • The mission aims to: 
    • Reduce reliance on foreign technologies. 
    • Enhance safety and national security. 
    • Create employment opportunities in the drone sector. 
    • Advance core capabilities in AI integration, UAV traffic management, and indigenous manufacturing. 
  • Support for Innovation and Talent Development: 
    • Pushpak will promote faster technology transfer from research labs to the market. 
    • It will provide: 
      • Incubation support to drone-based startups. 
      • Advanced training opportunities for students and researchers in drone-related fields.

Drone Technology