It doesn’t announce itself with noise — it arrives with impact. Drones, at Marut Drones Pvt Ltd, are engineered as infrastructure, not spectacle. Built for endurance, precision, and scale, its technology operates where traditional systems fall short — automating agriculture, enabling long-range medical logistics, supporting surveillance, and restoring ecosystems through aerial seeding. By integrating hardware, AI-driven software, and on-ground training into a single ecosystem, the company has turned drones into everyday tools of productivity and resilience. The focus isn’t flight alone, but outcomes — reduced labour, lower costs, faster delivery, and technology that works reliably in real-world Indian conditions. In an interaction with CE, Prem Kumar Vislawath, founder of Marut Drones, speaks about building technology with purpose and scale.
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Tell us about the inspiration that led to the creation of Marut Drones in 2019?
We were trying to solve a problem. At Marut, we were trying to identify the problem statement around dengue and malaria. We were using drones to eradicate dengue and malaria. Eventually, we moved into agriculture because there is a lot of manual labour involved, pesticide usage is unsafe, and traditional practices were ineffective. There is also a greater shortage of labour and low adoption of protective agricultural technologies. The major thought was whether we could make drones accessible, helpful, and affordable for the farming community. At the start, we did not directly manufacture drones — we were focused on building the technology. Over time, we started building the drones ourselves. Today, we have created an ecosystem where we train people, identify rural agri-entrepreneurs, provide them with drones, and they offer services directly to end farmers.
Your work spans agriculture, healthcare, logistics, and public health. How do you decide which problems deserve your technology first?
Initially, we were working on dengue and malaria, but that is more of a government-centric use case. We wanted a scalable use case with less government intervention, which is why we chose agriculture. In agriculture, many people in the farming community face health issues like cancer, and the younger crowd is moving away from farming. So we thought about building technology that the 20–30 age group could use to stay engaged in farming and support end farmers. That was the thought process.
Could you take us through the products being developed by Marut Drones?
Today, we are working primarily in the agriculture space. These drones function like tractors — essentially aerial tractors. They can be used for transplantation, seeding, spraying, crop monitoring, and pollination — six different applications. One drone handles multiple applications, enabling year-long usage in agriculture. That is our first product. The second product is a drone for afforestation, where we carry out planting in deforested areas. Next, we have logistics drones that can carry up to 100 kg, used for medical deliveries such as blood and vaccines, as well as cargo delivery. These are point-to-point deliveries, not last-mile delivery. We also have drones for surveillance purposes, used by industrial areas, police, and corporate industries. These are some of the product use cases we currently have.
How do drones like the AG365 differentiate themselves from others available in the market?
If you look at other drones in the market, most are designed for one application only. For example, spraying drones are useful for a maximum of 150 days in a year. We have built drones that can be used for 365 days with multiple use cases and multi-utility functionality. Because of this, the entrepreneur or individual purchasing our drone achieves return on investment in less than six months, compared to nearly two years for other drones. We also build technology that does not require users to understand the science behind it. They just need to click — the drone software handles the entire operation.
How is Marut Drones contributing to defence and warfare applications?
We mainly provide drones for tactical surveillance and delivery purposes. We extensively support defence organisations and PSUs. From a warfare perspective, our drones are used for logistics delivery, surveillance, and tactical operations.
You have also started the Marut Drone Academy. What was the need for this initiative?
The thought process was simple — new technology requires new skills, and these skills can be acquired in less than a week. Unlike earlier times when courses took six months or a year, drone skills can be learned quickly. While building this technology, we noticed a shortage of skilled people. There was aspiration — everyone wanted to use drones — but very few knew how to operate or repair them, especially for use cases like delivery or surveillance. We identified this gap and started our first academy in 2021. Similar to a driving licence system, we provide DGCA licences, as a mandatory licence is required in India to fly drones.We currently have academies in Punjab, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, and we are expanding to Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. Presently, we have seven academies. Our aim is to eventually have one academy in every state and bring rural youth into the industry by training them to fly, repair, develop, and maintain drones for various applications.
At the PM Kisan Samman Sammelan, the prime minister appreciated your technology and emphasised drone adoption in the rural economy. What about AG365 impressed him?
He was keen to understand how technology could be deployed in rural areas and how it could generate employment — not just for men, but for women as well. We presented case studies of women who initially earned Rs 8,000 – Rs 10,000 and are now earning Rs 25,000 – Rs 30,000 because of drone adoption. In many cases, women are earning more than men in their families. We showcased transplantation in paddy farming. Traditionally, it requires 20 days of nursery preparation and 10 women for manual transplantation. With drones, seeds can be directly sown, eliminating the waiting period and labour requirement. We also demonstrated applications like pollination, all done using a single drone. Initially, he assumed that each application would require a specialised drone. We explained that our drones function like tractors — plug-and-play systems that can be used for multiple use cases. He also asked how rural people with limited technical knowledge could operate them. We explained that someone with a minimum 10th-class education can learn to operate a drone within a week and earn up to ` 10,000 per day. Since we have a presence in states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and across 10 states, he wanted to understand whether this model could scale beyond one location. We showed how it creates employment across states. He was also keen to know whether farmers use drones repeatedly. We explained that once farmers adopt drones, they do not return to manual practices. For example, where traditional methods use 100 litres of water per acre, drones require only 10 litres, reducing water usage, pesticide usage, and per-acre costs. This directly aligns with his vision of doubling farmers’ income by reducing input costs and increasing profitability.
Can you elaborate on Marut Drones’ initiatives to train women in rural India?
Even before the Women’s Bill introduced by the Government of India, we began working with women in rural areas because we believe this technology is not gender-biased. We started training working women and self-help group women in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Their curiosity and learning speed were faster, and they could easily operate the drones. There are no barriers — if someone can use a mobile phone, they can operate a drone. Through CSR initiatives, we provided drones and training. Initially, family members like husbands and mothers-in-law accompany them. Over time, these women independently went to farms, operated drones confidently, and emerged as small entrepreneurs providing technology-driven services to farmers.
What are the current challenges in the Indian drone industry, and how is Marut Drones addressing them?
One of the biggest challenges is after-sales support. We provide a mandatory one-year warranty and on-site after-sales support. We have a 24-hour SLA — if the issue is not resolved within that time, we provide a replacement drone to reduce downtime. Another challenge is continuous technology development. We started with 10-litre drones and are now developing 30-litre and 50-litre drones, including applications for aquaculture such as fish feeding. We continuously invest in R&D, follow DGCA certification requirements, and offer multiple product lines so customers can choose based on their budget.
What initiatives is Marut Drones taking towards urban air mobility?
In 2022, we conducted India’s first BVLOS operations, where drones flew to unknown locations, delivered medical supplies like blood and vaccines over 45 km, and returned. Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia visited Telangana to witness this demonstration. Our intention was to connect district hospitals with peripheral PHCs and community health centres using drones. We worked with the World Economic Forum and the Ministry of Civil Aviation. During disasters like the Assam floods and operations in Meghalaya, we worked with the NDRF. We realised that drone taxis or eVTOLs are the future. We have partnered with a Japanese company, SkyDrive, which is developing three-passenger air taxis. We aim to bring this technology to India, complete certifications, testing, and eventually launch it. However, regulations take time, so we expect urban air mobility to become practical between 2028 and 2030.
How is Marut Drones using AI in its technology?
AI is used extensively in route mapping and automation. Once a drone flies, all coordinates are captured automatically, and repeat mapping is not required. We are also working on AI-based pest and disease detection. Using imagery, the drone will identify affected areas and spray only where needed, significantly reducing pesticide usage.
What does the roadmap ahead look like for Marut Drones?
We are launching heavy-payload drones — 30-litre, 50-litre, and 100-kg drones. We are also focusing on exports, with our first shipments going to Fiji and Myanmar. Additionally, we are developing new drone applications for firefighting, solar panel cleaning, and disaster management.