Govt Approves Drones PLI Scheme Worth INR 120 Cr

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has issued production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme guidelines for drones manufacturing and drone components companies. In a bid to support the indigenous drone industry, the MoCA has announced an INR 120 Cr fund allocation for companies manufacturing drones and drone components between FY23 and FY25.

The guidelines cover definitions, qualifications and application eligibility, online portal project management agency (PMA) details and more.

The PLI scheme will be applicable to India registered companies that are manufacturing drones and drone components in one or more locations in the country.

The Scheme was first introduced in September 2021 and would offer a 20% incentive over the value addition to drone manufacturers and related software. For context, value addition is the difference between net sales and the purchase cost of drone components. 

So far, the MoCA has identified 12 drone manufacturers and 14 drone component manufacturers as beneficiaries under the said PLI Scheme. The scheme also comes almost a year after the release of Drone Rules, 2021, which intend to provide a regulatory framework for the ecosystem.

Nitty-Gritties Of The Drones PLI Scheme

The PLI Scheme is targeted towards drones and drone components such as airframe, propulsion systems (engine and electric), power systems, batteries and associated components, launch and recovery systems, communication systems, cameras, sensors, detect-and-avoid systems and more. It will also include software for drones and drone components, among others.

The PLI scheme also notified the application process and the nodal agency that will manage the implementation, application and eligibility verification of companies. 

The empowered group of secretaries (EGoS) has also been notified that will conduct reviews of eligible companies, understanding their investments, employment generation, production and value addition under the scheme. 

The ministry also outlined the incentive disbursement terms including the deadline to claim incentives, prescribed documents, claims’ examination, disbursement timeline and forms, self-certified quarterly reviews, dispute redressal and more.

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