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India's leading drone start-up Garuda Aerospace has signed an agreement with Israel-based international defence electronics firm Elbit Systems at the Defence Expo 2022 in Gandhinagar to provide Skylark 3 unmanned aircraft system (UAS) drones to commercial as well as government agencies.
Garuda Aerospace also said Skylark 3 will be mainly utilised for the Survey of India projects to implement large-scale surveying and mapping of villages under the Swamitva Scheme. The company said these high-end drones would be equipped with advanced sensors which can be utilised for large-scale mining projects for steel plants, coal mines like BCCL, Coal India, NTPC facilities across the country. Drone Shakti projects will also be areas of joint development for technology and execution. The companies would also design, build and customise unmanned aerial vehicles for various applications across this promising and diverse sector, according to the statement. The superior drones can be operated for around 6-9 hours with increasing cost-efficiency and endurance. Garuda Aerospace has already been the most successful firm with Swamitva projects, having recently completed mapping of over 7,000 villages in just one year for the government, in a cost-effective manner, according to the statement released today. The statement said this strategic alliance would further look at executing a massive order book of Rs 150 crore in a shorter duration and was expected to increase Garuda Aerospace's revenue by over 1000 per cent in the mapping service vertical. Garuda Aerospace Founder and CEO Agnishwar Jayaprakash said: "It's been a great Defence Expo for Garuda Aerospace as we have partnered with Elbit Systems Ltd and we look forward to define an ecosystem of drones, providing ultimate support to several government agencies." He also said that the company had always been known to provide hi-tech multiple drone-related services and this co-efficient partnership will transcend into being India's most valuable start-up, scale and aim to fulfil the multiple requirements for commercial UAVs usage. He said, "We also signed a significant MoU with Lockheed Martin, after which we unveiled our new Delta Wing tactical drone named Vajra." said: "We are excited to partner with Garuda Aerospace to provide a variety of civilian services using advanced UAS and sensor technology. We believe that together, Elbit and Garuda can respond effectively to India's growing requirements for civilian UAVs usage.'' Garuda Aerospace recently commenced its USD 30 million Series A round at USD 250 million valuation. Former Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has invested and is also the Brand Ambassador of the company. MS Dhoni has recently launched a drone named 'Droni'. Garuda Aerospace boasts of a 400-drone fleet and a well-trained team of over 500 pilots across 26 different cities. Garuda Aerospace has been termed India's most valuable start-up and expects to be India's first drone Unicorn start-up in the near future, according to the statement. (ANI)
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