Omega group firm looks to enter drone mkt with Rs 75 cr investment

Omega Seiki Mobility, part of the Anglian Omega Group, is looking to enter the fast-emerging drone market with an investment of around Rs 75 crore and is open to onboard a partner as it aspires to become a global player in this space, group chairman Uday Narang has said.

The company may hit the market with its unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as early as December, with potential customers expected to come from both public and private sectors, he said.

The new national policy notified by the government in August this year for the segment makes it easier and cheaper for individuals to own and operate drones in the country.

Besides reducing the number of forms that need to be filled to operate them from 25 to 5 and decreasing the types of fees charged from the operator from 72 to 4, the rules have also abolished the requirement of various approvals, including certificate of conformance, certificate of maintenance, import clearance, acceptance of existing drones, operator permits, authorisation of R&D organisation and student remote pilot licence.

We are interested in developing a separate business vertical for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) business. OSM is planning on making an investment of close to Rs 75 crore. We will invest in acquiring the technology for products and services, Narang told PTI.

Stating that OSM wishes to be a global player in the drone services market with alliances in this space, he said, We wish to be the first to be in this market integrating UAV with our EV and logistics services.

OSM is a business impact organisation and it is looking for opportunities in the new age world of mobility, communication and energy, he said.

We identify the problem and enter the industry with our disruptive solution. We are going to be applying the same to our drone service, Narang said.

OSM is aiming for the launch of its drone business in December, with India, Africa and Asian countries as the target markets added that its services will include services with cognitive abilities, using high-end autonomous technologies for real-time decision-making abilities.

Our drones will be leading the path from automation to the autonomy of drones, he said.

The end-users of these services will be government agencies, govt agencies for vaccines, the National Highway Authority of India, ISRO, emergency services and e-commerce, among others, Narang said.

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OSM drones can be equipped with a number of sensors, including distance sensors (ultrasonic, laser, lidar), time-of-flight sensors, chemical sensors, and stabilisation and orientation sensors, among others, he said.

Drone services by OSM will include- geospatial services-land survey, geographical information systems, logistics of essential products, services, other-location based services, GPS/LBS, LIDAR, building information modeling etc.