Bengaluru: In what comes as a welcome development, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have granted permission to the Telangana government to use drones to deliver covid-19 vaccines. 

The experimental delivery of Covid-19 vaccines will take place within Visual Line of Sight (VLOS) Range using drones. The permission exemption is valid for a period of one year or until further orders. 

These trials, a statement from the ministry of Civil Aviation adds, will also assist in assessing conditions such as population, degree of isolation, geography etc to identify regions that specifically require drone deliveries.

Earlier this month, similar permission was granted to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for conducting feasibility study of Covid-19 vaccine delivery using drones in collaboration with IIT Kanpur.

The grant of these permissions is intended to achieve the dual objectives of faster vaccine delivery & improved healthcare access by:

In simple terms, such a delivery will help augment the medical supply chain. We should also keep in mind that India will have more vaccines coming soon and millions of doses will be transported across India. 

Meanwhile, the vaccine rollout for those who are in the age group of 18 to 45 has been delayed due to the dearth of vaccines. 

As of now, only those who are 45+ eligible to get the jab. 

Several states have placed orders for the vaccines. Due to the heavy rush, vaccines will be available to the states only in Mid May.