Chief Minister, Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu while virtually addressing the concluding ceremony of the first North India’s ‘Drone conclave’ from Chandigarh today, emphasized on the promotion of IT-driven governance in Himachal Pradesh highlighting the potential benefits of the drone technology which could play a vital role to benefit farmers, horticulturists, besides other sectors including monitoring law and order. Sukhu said that the State Government was committed to leverage modern technology, such as artificial intelligence, to enhance governance.
He further stated that Himachal was embracing technological advancements, paving the way for transformative changes. He said that the deliberations held and the presentations made during the Himachal Drone Conclave will prove beneficial for the hilly State like Himachal due to its challenging topography. Highlighting the importance of technology adoption, Sukhu asked the Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Agricultural University in Palampur to exhibit the use of Drone technology on its campus as well as to motivate farmers to embrace technological advancements for increasing their economy and efficiency while anticipating his strong belief that the outcomes of these efforts would become apparent within the next six months.
Expressing his pleasure on the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for drone manufacturing in Himachal Pradesh, the Chief Minister assured that the State Government would extend all possible support and required facilities to the investors and would procure drones for usage in the government sector. On the occasion, five significant Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) were signed, amounting to Rs. 200 Crore. These included an agreement with FICCI to promote the use of drones in governance. Additionally, agreements were also made with Abecode Technologies Private Limited and Dronetech Solutions Private Limited for investment in Himachal, SkyeAir for an Unmanned Traffic Management solution to oversee flight operations, in collaboration with the Department of Digital Technologies and Governance, CSKHPKV and IIT Ropar.
The collaboration between CSKHPKV and IIT Ropar specifically focused on areas such as AI-based digital entomology, livestock management, cold chain management, IoT and precision agriculture, including drone technologies. Chief Parliamentary Secretary, Ashish Butail expressed gratitude to the Chief Minister for organizing the Himachal Drone Conclave in Palampur. He emphasized the widespread use of drones in various fields and lauded the State Government’s efforts to maximize the benefits of technology for the people. Principal Advisor (IT and Innovations) Gokul Butail highlighted that the vision of the Chief Minister inspired organizing such a conclave, a first of its kind in Himachal Pradesh. He said that drone technology could provide employment opportunities for the youth in the near future. Secretary Information Technology, Dr. Abhishek Jain detailed about the Conclave, which saw the participation of representatives from 26 private companies and 25 state government departments.
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