VIJAYAWADA: Amaravati Drone Summit should establish proper guidelines for the development of the drone sector in the State, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu remarked during a meeting at the Secretariat on Monday.
He reviewed arrangements for the two-day drone summit with Investments and Infrastructure Development Minister BC Janardhan Reddy, Secretary (Investments and Infrastructure) S Suresh Kumar and AP Drone Corporation Managing Director Dinesh Kumar.
He asked officials to ensure that more youngsters participate in the summit. He instructed them to make arrangements for students from various colleges and schools to attend the exhibition, organised as part of the drone summit, at CK Convention in Mangalagiri.
Naidu directed the officials to compile takeaways from discussions and key presentations to outline how they can contribute towards making Andhra Pradesh the drone capital. “If necessary, form a committee with senior officials from departments that primarily have opportunities to use drones to study the themes further,” he told them.
Earlier, Suresh Kumar and Dinesh Kumar addressed a press conference and pointed out that 6,929 registrations were received for the drone summit.
Stating that all arrangements for the two-day fete have been completed, they said the Chief Minister will inaugurate the event at CK Convention at 10.30 am. Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu will also participate.
Further, Suresh Kumar explained that the summit will feature a total of nine sessions and four keynote addresses. He also announced that the State government will sign two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) during the summit. A deal has been struck with the Quality Council of India which will enable the State to issue Drone Remote Pilot License certificates, and also train 20,000 individuals as drone pilots.
Another MoU will be signed with IIT Tirupati as a knowledge partner. As part of the drone summit, an exhibition, showcasing 50 exhibits, has also been organised. It will be open to everyone from Tuesday afternoon.
Elaborating on the hackathon, Suresh Kumar said 520 registrations have been received.
The competition has been categorised into nine themes across four categories. Initially, they planned to select only three winners, but based on public response, the Chief Minister suggested encouraging more participants. Subsequently, three winners will be chosen in each category.
Dinesh Kumar said a mega drone show with 5,500 drones will be held at Punnami Ghat on Tuesday from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM. As many as 8,000 people can be accommodated in the venue.