Aereo Receives the First Set of Incentives in Drone-Based PLI Scheme from MoCA

Aereo is one of the 12 drone companies to receive the first set of incentives from the Ministry of Civil Aviation~

Aereo (formerly Aarav Unmanned Systems) received the first set of disbursements from the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for drones and drone components. MoCA has disbursed an amount of Rs. 30 crores to 12 beneficiaries for the fiscal year FY 2022-2023.

The PLI scheme for drones and drone components was announced in September 2021. Following that, a total of 23 drone companies were provisionally shortlisted in July 2022 for the incentives under this scheme. However, after due diligence by the government, only 6 drone manufacturers and 6 drone component manufacturers received the first incentives from the aviation ministry in April 2023. Aereo, is one of 6 drone manufacturers to receive the incentive under the PLI scheme.

Aereo is one of the largest drone solutions companies in the commercial drone market in India with a strong presence in mining, urban and rural development, land survey, and construction sectors. It has built advanced intellectual properties (IPs) over the past decade and filed around 15 patents. Additionally, it was the first company to develop a DGCA-certified survey-grade PPK drone in India. Aereo has mapped over 40,000 villages under the SVAMITVA scheme of GOI and close to 25,000 square kilometers in the state of Haryana under large-scale mapping.

After receiving the incentive, Vipul Singh, Co-founder, CEO, Aereo, said, “The first PLI disbursement marks a milestone for indigenous drone technology in India. We are extremely thankful to the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) for the timely release of this amount. The PLI incentive will enable Aereo to expand its operations across and beyond the nation, and also accelerate indigenous R&D in the country. Along with PLI we also look forward towards a Design Linked Incentive (DLI) in the next year that will further strengthen the booming drone industry.”