DRONE

TECHNOLOGY
INDI A OPP OR T U NIT Y
REP OR T 2 0 19
 TABLE OF
CONTENTS
SCOPE OF THE REPORT 05

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 07

INTRODUCTION: A BRIEF HISTORY OF DRONE APPLICATIONS 09

DEEPTECH IN INDIA 13

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK 19

DRONE COMPANIES: INDIA VS GLOBAL MARKETS 27

APPLICATION OF DRONES 31

COMMERCIAL DRONE USAGE: A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE 49

CONCLUSION 51

GLOSSARY 52

BIBLIOGRAPHY 54
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

THE SCOPE OF
THE REPORT
The demand for drones in India is increasing day by day. As the market in fields such
as last-mile delivery and surveillance is constantly evolving, India is framing new
policies to facilitate a sustainable environment for drone applications.

However, Indian startups lag consumer demand in terms of market presence. In a club of
about 50 startups in this domain, only a handful have managed to raise significant funds.
To date, the Indian drone startups have just raised $16.56 Mn.

This report focuses on the potential of drone technology in a variety of sectors,

ranging from agriculture and construction to ecommerce, hyperlocal and logistics.
The scope of the study is limited not only to civilian applications, but also covers
military applications in the context of the Indian Armed Forces.

It also includes a comparison of regulations around the globe with respect to

unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), with a view to understanding the factors taken into
account by authorities while drafting such a policy. Overall, it provides an insight into
the existing and future market potential of UAVs in India.

05
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
Drone Startups Launched in India: 50
Indian Drone Startups to Have Shut Shop: 10
Funded Indian Drone Startups: 06
Total Funding Raised by Indian Drone Startup: $16.56 Mn

• Drone startups had only a 2.26% share among the total deeptech
investments between (2014-2018)
• Although the government has laid out regulations to permit the
commercial application of drone technology, drone manufacturing
in India appears to be weak. According to data from the Stockholm
International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), India was the second
largest importer of UAVs between 2010 and 2014, with the country
responsible for 13.2% of total global demand
• UAVs offer a $1 Bn opportunity in agricultural applications,
provided a proper credit facility be put in place for the marginal and
small farmers in India
• In the construction industry, the total addressable market (TAM) for
UAV applications is estimated at $4.14 Bn
• For ecommerce and hyperlocal startups, UAVs offer a total
addressable market of an estimated $160.99 Mn, which can enable
a faster last-mile delivery of products

07
INTRODUCTION
TO DRONE
APPLICATIONS
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19
A BRIEF HISTORY OF
DRONE APPLICATIONS
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), or drones, have been used for covert military operations for a long
period of time. In 1917, a renowned British engineer, Archibald Montgomery Low, tested what is known
as the earliest powered UAV. His ‘Aerial Target’ was aimed at training apprentice pilots in air-strike
tactics for combat.
Controlled remotely using a wireless telegraph, Aerial Target is known as one of the earliest examples
of remote-controlled military drones.
However, Britain wasn’t the only country experimenting with UAVs at that time. During World War I,
a secret project took a more advanced turn in the United States. The project was supervised by Oliver
Wright and Charles F Kettering. With support from the US government, Kettering developed the world’s
first “self-flying aerial torpedo”. The UAV, called the Kettering Bug, was made out of wood and weighed
around 240 kilograms. Equipped with a bomb one-third the size of its weight, the Bug could be used to
penetrate enemy defence at a longer distance minimising the loss of human life.
War is often viewed to drive technological advancement. Many prominent scientists and engineers,
such as Werner Heisenberg and Alan Turing, discovered significant breakthroughs when their countries
were involved in a war. Despite the need for unmanned aerial vehicles at the time, the drone technology
applications were limited to military operations only.
10
D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19
THE PRESENT STATE OF UAVs
In the post-world war era, the focus of the drone technology has diversified, expanding to
civilian applications as well from being only limited to military applications. This has opened doors
for breakthrough innovations such as GPS, internet and UAVs to be also introduced to civilians.
Such technological innovations have shifted the focus on more peaceful and constructive applications.
Such applications, especially drones, are enhancing daily economic trades including product delivery,
photography and agricultural around the world.
Although the advancement in technologies such as computer vision and aerodynamics has boosted
the effectiveness of the military application of drones more than ever, its use case is no longer
limited to destruction. This change in perception is primarily brought about by the efforts of visionary
entrepreneurs, who have enabled a much more constructive direction towards UAV applications.
During 2016-2017, the estimated market opportunity for drones stood at $100 Bn.
More and more companies around the world are entering the drone market with the hope of capitalising
on the growing military and civilian demand for UAVs. It is the very pace at which the demand for
drones is increasing that justifies the imagination of a future with every individual in the world owning
a personal flying object.
A similar society was conceptualised by the Anglo-French journalist and writer William Tufnell Le Queux
in his book titled ‘The Unknown Tomorrow’. Although Le Queux’s dream of such a future was delayed
by the two world wars, the rise in civilian applications of UAVs (like hyperlocal delivery, surveillance etc.)
makes it achievable in this century.
11
DEEPTECH
IN INDIA
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

Deeptech is the common ground where scientists and engineers work together to solve a real-life industry problem The deeptech startups in India received a total investment of $732 Mn in 170 deals between 2014 and 2018.
with sophisticated engineering innovation. Deeptech is a mix of technologies including artificial intelligence, In terms of value, the funding in deeptech startups has risen at a CAGR of 22.79% during this period. The number
machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT) and robotics.
of deals has increased at a CAGR of 20.11% over the five-year interval. This has been indicated in Figure 1.
Widely-used deeptech technologies include:
Deeptech is arguably the most innovative sector to gain popularity in the Indian startup ecosystem.
Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping (SLAM)
But the volume of investments in deeptech is relatively lower compared to the top funded sectors.
SLAM is the synchronous location awareness that makes the drone or robot aware of its surroundings.
Some possible reasons for the weak investor interest in the Indian deeptech industry could be:
Gyro-Stabilised Camera Systems
These camera systems are used to correct the movement of drones/robots using modern electronic data position High Setup Cost
to enable a high degree of stabilisation.
The deeptech ecosystem requires a high-skill labour that is well-versed in advance technology.

Multirotor Aerodynamics This in turn inflates the setup and operational cost of deeptech startups.

In this framework of aerodynamics, four rotor motors are used simultaneously to provide an escalation to the craft. Weak Intellectual Property Framework
Despite increased legal protection, copyright infringement is still rampant in India due to lax
administration and enforcement practices, and is not in line with many developed economies.

DEEPTECH STARTUPS IN INDIA This is evident from the fact that India’s overall score has improved only marginally in the fifth edition
of the Global Intellectual Property Index by the US Chamber of Commerce published in 2017.

INVESTMENT INSIGHTS The annual index, as part of The Root of Innovation report, assigns a score of 8.75 out of 35 for India
— a moderate improvement as compared to 7.05 in 2016 — citing “fundamental weaknesses” in the
country’s intellectual property framework.
FIGURE 1: YoY TREND: TOTAL FUNDING AND DEAL COUNT FOR DEEPTECH STARTUPS
CAGR of total funding 22.79%, whereas for the deal count is 20.11% Low Market Adoption
Fear towards adoption of new technology has remained a major challenge for any new technology to
$240M 65
penetrate in the Indian market. This is evident from the fact that the World Economic Forum places India
at the 88th spot in its Readiness index. China is ranked second in the index, which gauges the degree
$220M 60
of preparation of a society to make good use of an affordable ICT (information and communications
$200M 54 technology) infrastructure and digital content.

$180M 49

$160M 43

FIGURE 2: COMPARISON: TOTAL INVESTMENTS IN ECOMMERCE, FINTECH, CONSUMER SERVICES AND DEEPTECH
$140M 38
Deeptech finding it hard to catch up with the top performing sectors of the Indian startup ecosystem

$120M 33

$100M 27

$80M 22 $732
$12,640 Mn $7,066 Mn $4,484 Mn
Mn
$60M 16
Funding Amount ($)

Number of Deals

$40M 11

$20M 5
Ecommerce Fintech Consumer Services Deeptech
0 0
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Funding Amount ($) Funding Amount ($)

14 15
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

FIGURE 3: COMPARISON: THE CAGR OF TOTAL FUNDING AND DEAL COUNT

IN ECOMMERCE, FINTECH, CONSUMER SERVICES AND DEEPTECH
Fintech remains the most promising sector for the future, while deeptech continues to struggle

-6.72%
Ecommerce
16.02%

55%
Fintech
31.47%

72.88%
Consumer
Services 15.96%

22.7%
Deep Tech
20.11%

0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

CAGR Funding Amount CAGR Number of Deals

As shown in Figure 3, consumers services and fintech clocked the maximum growth in funding
during 2014-2018.

On the other hand, the deeptech sector has logged a moderate growth rate of 22.7% in terms of
funding amount, and 20.11% in terms of number of deals. This reflects a disparity of confidence
between startups and venture capitalist when it comes to promoting innovative technology
in the Indian startup ecosystem.

The top funded sectors in the startup ecosystem are flooded with the concepts and business
models which have already tried and tested in the foreign markets.

16
REGULATORY
FRAMEWORK
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

DRONES REGULATIONS FROM

AROUND THE WORLD
FIGURE 4: OVERVIEW - STATE OF DRONE REGULATIONS AROUND THE WORLD
Countries struggling with some sort of social instability seems to be wary of drone regulations. TABLE 1: OVERVIEW - DRONE REGULATIONS AROUND THE GLOBE

GOVERNING YEAR OF
COUNTRY KEY POINTS
AUTHORITY RELEASE

a. Recreational Fliers and Modeler

Community-Based Organizations
• You must fly a drone for hobby or
recreation only(no side jobs or
in-kind work allowed)
• You must fly it within a visual line
of sight
• You must fly one weighing under
24.95 Kgs unless certified by a
community-based organisation
• You must notify the airport and 2015
air traffic control tower prior to
United States flying the drone within 8.1 Km of
an airport

b. Certificated Remote Pilots including

Unknown Legal/Regulated Banned/Unregulated Commercial Operators
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
• You must hold a remote pilot
certificate issued by the FAA to fly
the drone commercially
As shown in Figure 4, a majority of nations have certain UAV policies in place to support
sectoral growth. As depicted, countries in the Middle East and Africa have either banned or • At the time of takeoff, your UAV must
have no policies in place for drone technology. Countries such as Syria, Iran and Iraq, among weigh less than 24.95 Kgs including
payload
several others, are suffering from socio-political instability and have banned any commercial
applications of drones. • You must fly it at or below a height of
121.9 metres
• You must fly it within a speed limit of
160.9 Km/hour

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 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

COUNTRY KEY POINTS GOVERNING YEAR OF COUNTRY KEY POINTS GOVERNING YEAR OF
AUTHORITY RELEASE AUTHORITY RELEASE

• Drones may not fly above 100

• Commercial drone operations in the meters without a permit. In a
UK require permission from the Civil controlled airspace, the maximum
Aviation Authority altitude allowed is 50 meters
• Insurance is required for all • Drones weighing over 5 kilograms
commercial drone operations may not be flown at night without
a permit
• All drones, regardless of mass, must
not fly 122 meters above the surface • Drone insurance is required for all
operations in Germany
• You may not fly a drone within 150 2017
• Drones may not be flown within
meters of any congested area or
1.5 kilometres to an airport
Federal
organised open-air assembly of
2009 Aviation
• Drones may not be flown above
more than 1,000 persons; or within
and at a lateral distance of 100
Office
50 meters of any person, property, Germany meters from federal highways,
vessel, vehicle,or structure not
federal waterways and railway
United Kindom under the control of the person in
facilities
charge of the aircraft
• You may not cause or permit any
article or animal (whether attached
to a parachute) to be dropped from
a small unmanned aircraft in a way • Any drones weighing 250 grams
that endangers persons or property or more must be registered with
the Civil Aviation Administration
(CAAC) of China
• Do not fly beyond the visual line
of sight
• The owner of a drone must be
registered with the Danish Transport,
• Do not fly above 120 meters
Civil N/A
Construction and Housing Authority • Do not fly in densely populated
areas
Aviation
• Microdrones weighing 250 grams or China Administration
less with a maximum speed of 50 • Do not fly in controlled areas
(CAAC)
kilometres per hour are not required unless approved by the Civil
to be registered Aviation Administration of China
Civil in advance
• The remote pilot must have a drone Aviation 2008
awareness accreditation for the
operation of a drone weighing more
Authority
than 7 kilograms
Denmark • A drones may not be flown above
100 meters in height
• A drone may not weigh more than
25 kilograms

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Common Traits in Drone Regulatory Policies Around the World

COUNTRY KEY POINTS GOVERNING YEAR OF
AUTHORITY RELEASE There are some fundamental things common in the regulations adopted by different countries around
the globe for commercial use of drones. These include:
• Special permission is required for flying drones over restricted or controlled areas such as airports
and military bases
• Drone should weigh between • Only flying a drone within a visual line of sight is permitted
250 grams and 35 kilograms
• Average height limit for the drones ranges between 150 meters and 205 meters
• Should fly within a height of • Drones are classified on the basis of their weight: the higher the weight, the more complicated
90 meters from the ground the regulations
• Should fly at least 5.6 kilometres • Prior registration is mandatory for flying near the public
away from aerodromes (any airport,
takeoff/landing area for an aircraft or N/A

POLICIES GOVERNING THE UAVs IN INDIA

seaplane base

Canada • Should fly outside of a controlled or

restricted airspace
• Should fly during the day and not The Indian government released the regulatory framework for drones in August 2018, identifying
in clouds them as part of the Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS). The RPAS has been classified
into five categories: nano (weighing up to 250 grams), micro (250 grams-2 Kg), small (2-25 Kg),
medium (25-150 Kg) and large (more than 150 Kg).

Key Features of Indian Drone Regulations

• Should not fly beyond a height of
120 meters from the ground • All drones except those in the nano category and the ones owned by the National Technical
Research Organisation, the Aviation Research Centre or central intelligence agencies are to be
• Should fly during the day and registered with a unique identification number (UIN)
kept within the visual line
• Other than nano and micro drones, and those owned by the NTRO, ARC or central intelligence
of sight
agencies, the operators are required to obtain an Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit (UAOP)
• Should fly at least 30 meters away • Drones must be operated within a visual line of sight and during day only
from other people 2017 • Only a maximum height of 400 feet is allowed for flying drones
• Should not fly a UAV over or near an • Barring the nano category, all drones must be fitted with a GPS, return-to-home (RTH) and
area affecting public safety or where anti-collision light on a mandatory basis
Australia emergency operations are underway
(without prior approval) Online Application for Flying Permission
• Not more than one UAV should fly at To receive a permit for using drones in India, a website called Digital Sky, has been facilitated by
a given moment of time aviation regulator DGCA or the Director General of Civil Aviation on a trial basis. A user is required to
register as an operator or pilot on the website in order to apply for a permit to fly drones in the country.
The drone is also required to be registered online.

24 25
DRONE COMPANIES:
INDIA Vs GLOBAL
MARKETS
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

FIGURE 5: COMPARISON: TOTAL FUNDING IN DRONE STARTUPS IN US, CHINA, ISRAEL, UK & INDIA
US leading the wave in the context of funding in drone startups, while funding in Indian drone startup struggles

United States $1,669,909,789

China $239,117,219

Israel $136,980,000

United Kingdon $38,098,953

India $16,565,000

$0 $500,000,000 $1,000,000,000 $1,000,000,000

Country

Total Funding ($)

Despite having a significant position in terms of the number of drone startups, India lags behind its
global peers in the context of the value of investment. At a mere $16.56 Mn, the total investment
in Indian drone startups signals a disequilibrium in terms of the market confidence between the
entrepreneur and the venture capitalist.

FIGURE 6: COMPARISON: TOTAL NUMBER OF DRONE STARTUPS IN US, CHINA, ISRAEL, UK AND INDIA
India beats UK,China and Israel in total number of startups

United States 194

India 50

United Kingdon 17

China 16

Israel 16

$0 50 100 150 200

Country

Total number of startups

28 29
APPLICATION
OF DRONES
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

As drones gain popularity across the globe, the Indian government has identified the utility that they
offer for a variety of applications, ranging from surveillance to geo-mapping. The Table 2 showcases
how different government-owned institutions are utilising or have utilised drones.

TABLE 2: APPLICATION OF DRONE BY INDIAN GOVERNMENT

NAME OF THE
APPLICATION DESCRIPTION
INSTITUTION

Indian Railways has decided to deploy drones

(UAV/NETRA) for carrying out a variety of
National activities, especially project monitoring and track
3D Geo-
Railway maintenance. The zonal arms have been directed
mapping
Systems to procure drones, in line with the Railways’ goal of
using technology to enhance safety and efficiency
in train operations.

Power Grid Drones are being used for project monitoring

Project and patrolling. They have been deployed on the
Corporation
surveillance Ballia-Bhiwadi HVDC line and the Pune substation,
of India among other areas on the Railways network.

National Locating
Disaster victims Disaster relief operations such as food supply and
Management during a search for the individuals in need etc.

Authority natural disaster

Central Coalfields, a unit of state-run mining major

Coal India, plans to use drones for activities such as
Central Project surveillance, exploration, regulation and operation
Coalfields surveillance of mines. Besides, it also aims to utilise drone
technology for, managing waste and post-mining
reclamation of land.

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 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

MILITARY APPLICATIONS
The global market for the military application of UAVs is estimated at around $70 Bn for the period
between 2016 to 2020. In September 2009, the Indian Air Force had purchased ten Harop unmanned
combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) from its Israeli counterpart under a contract worth $100 Mn. The Harop
is equipped with 23 kilograms of explosives along with a state-of-the-art object recognition system
capable of detecting and eliminating enemy targets.
The Harop missile can be launched from a diversified range of transportable platforms (land, sea and
water) towards the potential target. It can be launched from any angle, horizontally or vertically. It can
automatically search, detect and attack the mobile or static targets from a long distance. The Harop can
be deployed in urban warfare, high-intensity/low-intensity conflicts as well as counter-terror missions.

FIGURE 7: MILITARY APPLICATIONS OF DRONES

INCURSION
Carrying out operations like counter terrorism and other
across the border attacks will be much more convenient
using a state of the art UAVs. This will also minimize
the risk of casualities which is a matter of concern for
the government.

SURVEILLANCE
The importance of reliable intelligence is an important part
of defence operations. The monitoring of international
borders can become much more efficient and effective
by leveraging the UAVs.

LOGISTICS
At times when troops are positioned at certain higher
terrains where mainstream modes of transport cannot be
used to provide them with regular supplies, use of drones
will be a much cheaper and easier option.

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D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

TABLE 3: LIST OF INDIAN STARTUPS WORKING ON MILITARY UAVs

STARTUP NAME LOCATION

Mumbai

Bengaluru

West Bengal

New Delhi

Bengaluru

The Indian military is widely dependent on foreign defence partners including the United States and
Israel for procuring UAVs. This could mean that either the homegrown startups operating in the combat
UAV domain lack innovation, or the scarcity of funds.

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CIVILIAN APPLICATIONS:
THE GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
In the context of utility, the scope of drone technology is much wider in civilian applications compared
to the military domain. The global market size of the civilian drone applications is estimated at $30 Bn
between 2016 and 2020.

FIGURE 8: TOTAL ADDRESSABLE MARKET: CIVILIAN APPLICATION OF DRONES (GLOBAL)

Construction and agriculture have the highest TAM for civilian drone application

$12B

$11B

$10B

$9B

$8B

$7B

$6B

$5B

$4B

$3B

$2B

$1B

0
Construction Agriculture Insurance Claims Offshore Oil/ Journalism
Gas Refining

38 39
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

Drone applications with the highest global total addressable market include construction ($11 Bn) and
agriculture ($6 Bn), a pattern reflected in the Indian market as well. The mode of construction changing
rapidly in emerging markets such as India, the construction industry in India is estimated to be worth
$738 Bn by 2022, and the use of UAVs in logistics and monitoring of is set to enhance the operations
along a reduction in costs. In the context of agriculture, although more than 50% of India’s GDP is

TOTAL ADDRESSABLE MARKET:

dependent on the tertiary sector, agriculture and farming-related activities still provide employment
to approximately 55% of its population. The use of drone-based fertilisation and pest monitoring can
boost agricultural productivity in the country.
THE INDIAN PERSPECTIVE
TABLE 4: LIST OF INDIAN STARTUPS WORKING ON COMMERCIAL UAVs

STARTUP NAME LOCATION

Chennai

Mumbai

New Delhi

Chennai

Mumbai

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TAM: AGRICULTURAL APPLICATION OF UAVs

The agriculture equipment industry, which facilitates machinery for day-to-day agri-operations in
India, is estimated at $9.43 Bn. The market opportunity (TAM) for UAV manufacturers looks promising,
as evident in Figure 9.

FIGURE 9: TOTAL ADDRESSABLE MARKET - APPLICATION OF DRONE IN INDIAN AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY

TAM for drone application in Indian Agriculture industry is $250 Mn

$180M

$160M

$140M

$120M

$100M

$80M

$60M

$40M

In Millions
$20M

0 $19,862,562 $65,551,235 $164,636,976

Large Group Medium Scale Semi Medium
Farmers Farmers Farmers

According Large
to Inc42 DataLabs
Group Farmers estimates, the total
Medium addressable
Scale Farmers market (TAM)
Semi in the
Medium Indian agriculture
Farmers
industry is $250 Mn. This figure factors in the fact that marginal and small-size farmers are not the right
target audience for UAVs due to the high setup costs.
Government intervention to promote technology adoption in farming, in the form of a subsidy to
reduce setup costs of new age technology can enhance the opportunity for UAV manufacturers in the
agriculture sector. Provided the number of small and marginal size farmers in India is relatively more than
semi medium, medium & large group farmers.

FIGURE 10: CATEGORISATION OF TOTAL ADDRESSABLE MARKET: APPLICATION OF DRONE

IN THE INDIAN AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY
Small Scale
15.4%
Semi Medium
16.5%
Medium
6.5% Large Group

2%

Marginal
59.6%

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D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

TAM: APPLICATION OF UAVs

IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
In case of the construction industry, the total addressable market for UAVs is relatively higher than
agriculture. The total addressable market for UAV applications in the construction industry is estimated
at $4.14 Bn (Figure 10). UAVs can be used primarily for operations such as project monitoring and
logistics, and pre-construction surveying and mapping of the land.

FIGURE 11: TOTAL ADDRESSABLE MARKET

APPLICATION OF DRONE IN INDIAN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
TAM for drone application in Indian Construction industry is $4.14 Bn

$3B

$2.5B

$2B

$1.5B

$1B

$0.5B

In Billions
0 $1,231,840,051 $2,909,475,360
Private Construction Companies Public Construction Companies

Target Audience

The primary applications of drones in the construction industry are:

Surveillance and Monitoring
Drones can be used to provide real-time updates on large-scale construction projects spread across
multiple locations.

3D Mapping
In comparison to the equipment used for pre-construction mapping at present, the use of drones can
enhance the entire process significantly.

Quality Control
The surveillance application of drones in the construction space can be expanded into quality control
by leveraging technologies including computer vision and object recognition.

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 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

TAM: APPLICATION OF UAVs

FOR THE INDIAN STARTUP ECOSYSTEM
In the startup ecosystem, the two industries where UAVs can make a significant impact in terms of
utility are ecommerce and hyperlocal. In both the areas, a large proportion of logistics and delivery
can be catered to using drones. Acknowledging the potential application of drones in hyperlocal
deliveries, Zomato recently acquired a Lucknow-based drone startup, Tech Eagle, which specialises in
the delivery of goods weighing up to 5 Kgs using UAV technology.

FIGURE 12: TOTAL ADDRESSABLE MARKET - APPLICATION OF DRONE IN INDIAN STARTUP ECOSYSTEM
TAM for drone application in the Indian Startup Ecosystem is $160.99 Mn

$80M

$70M

$60M

$50M

$40M

$30M

$20M

In Millions
$10M

0 $40,794,040 $47,350,225 $72,846,500

Ecommerce Hyperlocal Logistics

According to Inc42 DataLabs research, the total addressable market (TAM) for UAVs in the startup
ecosystem (ecommerce and hyperlocal) is estimated at $160.99 Mn. In 2019, the total market size of
the ecommerce retail logistics industry is poised to be $1.86 Bn. These figures support the view that
UAVs have the potential to disrupt approximately 14.82% of the ecommerce retail logistics industry.

Here are the primary drone applications applicable in some of these areas:
Ecommerce Logistics
The ecommerce companies in India can leverage drones for the fulfillment of their last-mile deliveries.
This will help them optimise their delivery channels, by reducing delivery costs and speeding up
delivery time.

Hyperlocal Deliveries
Provided that the hyperlocal delivery companies only cater to local audience, the application of drone
technology is comparatively more feasible in this space compared to ecommerce when it comes to
last-mile deliveries.

Fleet Outsourcing
In contrast to ecommerce and hyperlocal companies, logistics companies can procure drones and
outsource their fleet subsequently to fulfil any shortfall in customer service.

47
 COMMERCIAL
USE OF DRONES:
A GLOBAL
PERSPECTIVE
 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19 D R O N E T E C H N O L O G Y R E P O R T 2 0 19

TABLE 5: OVERVIEW: COMMERCIAL DRONE APPLICATION AROUND THE GLOBE

ORGANISATION NAME APPLICATION

Journalism
LOCATION

UK
CONCLUSION
Provided that the demand for drones in day-to-day business operations is only
Logistics Multiple locations
going to increase in the future, the government needs to be inclusive and take into
account suggestions from the construction, agriculture, ecommerce, hyperlocal
Ecommerce logistics Multiple locations and logistics industries. These industries are bound to be first movers in adopting
drone technology for the delivery and management of routine activities — thereby
pushing demand.
Medical logistics Japan Here are some of the issues the Ministry of Civil Aviation seeks to examine in its draft
Drone Regulations 2.0:
• Certification of safe and controlled operation of drone hardware and software
Ecommerce logistics Japan
• Air space management through automated operations linked into overall airspace
management framework
Pizza delivery New Zealand
• Beyond visual-line-of-sight operations
• Contribution to establishing global standards
Ecommerce logistics Japan • Suggestions for modifications of existing CARs and/or new CARs
Although the government aims to cater to a majority of concerns reflected by industry
Hyperlocal delivery US experts, a more open and inclusive approach is required to draft the perfect policy for
the booming drone industry in India. The Indian government can adopt the approach
taken by the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia in order to ensure that
Shore-to-ship the upcoming drone regulations are more inclusive.
package delivery Singapore

Google Wing Drone delivery Multiple locations

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GLOSSARY
FIGURES
Figure 1: YoY Trend: Total Funding and Deal Count for Deeptech Startups
“CAGR of total funding 22.79%, whereas for the deal count is 20.11%”

Figure 2: Comparison: Total Investments in Ecommerce, Fintech, Consumer Services and Deeptech
VC: Venture Capital “Deeptech finding it hard to catch up with the top performing sectors of
the Indian startup ecosystem”
YoY: Year-on-Year
Figure 3: Comparison (CAGR): Total Funding and Deal Count in Ecommerce, Fintech,
TAM: Total Addressable Market
Consumer Services and Deeptech
$XXK: XX Thousand USD “Fintech the most promising sector for the future, while Deeptech continues to struggle”

$XX Mn: XX Million USD Figure 4: Overview: State of Drone Regulations Around the World
“Countries struggling with some sort of social instability seems to be wary of drone regulations”
$XX Bn: XX Billion USD
Figure 5: Comparison: Total Funding in Drone Startups in the US, China, Israel, UK and India
SIPRI: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute “The US leading the wave in the context of funding in drone startups, while funding in Indian drone
startup struggles”
UAV: Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
Figure 6: Comparison: Total Number of Drone Startups in the US, China, Israel, UK and India
CAGR: Compounded Annual Growth Rate
“India beats the UK, China and Israel in the total number of startups”
US: United States of America
Figure 7: Military Applications of Drones
UK: United Kingdom
Figure 8: Total Addressable Market: Civilian Application of Drones (Global)
RPAS: Remotely Piloted Aircraft System “Construction and Agriculture have the highest TAM for civilian drone application”

NTRO: National Technical Research Organisation
ARC: Aviation Research Centre
UAOP: Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit
RTH: Return-to-Home
DGCA: Director General of Civil Aviation
Figure 9: Total Addressable Market: Application of Drone in Indian Agriculture Industry
“TAM for drone application in Indian Agriculture industry is $250 Mn”
Figure 10: Categorisation Total Addressable Market: Application of Drone in
Indian Agriculture Industry
Figure 11: Total Addressable Market: Application of Drone in the Indian Construction Industry
“TAM for drone application in the Indian Construction industry is $4.14 Bn”

Kgs: Kilograms Figure 12: Total Addressable Market: Application of Drone in the Indian Startup Ecosystem
“TAM for drone application in the Indian Startup Ecosystem is $160.99 Mn”
UCAV: Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles

TABLES
Table 1: Overview: Drone Regulations Around the Globe

Table 2: Application of Drone by Indian Government

Table 3: List of Indian startups working on military UAVs

Table 4: List of Indian Startups Working on Commercial UAVs

Table 5: Overview: Commercial Drone Application Around the Globe

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Inc42 DataLabs internal database

https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/technology-driving-innovation/drones/

Agriculture Census 2015-16

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=183093

https://uavcoach.com/drone-laws/

https://www.casa.gov.au/aircraft/landing-page/flying-drones-australia

https://www.faa.gov/uas/

https://www.tc.gc.ca/en/services/aviation/drone-safety/flying-drone-safely-legally.html

https://www.casa.gov.au/aircraft/landing-page/flying-drones-australia

https://www.bgbl.de/xaver/bgbl/start.xav?startbk=Bundesanzeiger_BGBl&jumpTo=bbl117s0683.pdf

https://books.google.co.in/

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