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25 Rural Women Graduate from FlySakhi Drone Programme at IIT Hyderabad
Twenty-five women from rural backgrounds have completed the inaugural FlySakhi – Drone Queens of Bharat cohort at IIT Hyderabad’s TiHAN centre. The programme, backed by WCOOPEF, CNRI and Syngenta, equips participants to run community‑owned drone‑service enterprises for agriculture.
By Telangana Today ·
What happened
Twenty-five women from rural backgrounds have completed the inaugural FlySakhi – Drone Queens of Bharat cohort at IIT Hyderabad’s TiHAN centre. The programme, backed by WCOOPEF, CNRI and Syngenta, equips participants to run community‑owned drone‑service enterprises for agriculture. Twenty‑five rural women graduated from IIT Hyderabad’s FlySakhi drone programme, ready to run community‑owned agricultural drone services. Hyderabad – In a ceremony held at the Technology Innovation Hub for Agriculture and Nutrition (TiHAN) on the IIT Hyderabad campus, twenty‑five rural women received certificates for completing the first cohort of FlySakhi – Drone Queens of Bharat. The programme, themed “Empowering Women Entrepreneurs through Agricultural Drone Technology”, was designed to train participants not only as drone pilots but also as owners of rural drone‑service businesses.
TL;DR
Twenty‑five rural women graduated from IIT Hyderabad’s FlySakhi drone programme, ready to run community‑owned agricultural drone services.
Key points
- 25 rural women completed the inaugural FlySakhi – Drone Queens of Bharat cohort
- Training covered drone operation, safety, agricultural applications and a drone‑as‑a‑Service business model
- Programme is led by WCOOPEF and CNRI, with TiHAN‑IIT Hyderabad as technology partner and Syngenta as CSR partner
- Graduates can offer fee‑for‑service drone services to farmers, cooperatives and FPOs
- Syngenta’s Sangeeta Dawar emphasized the need for skill‑building alongside technological innovation
Hyderabad – In a ceremony held at the Technology Innovation Hub for Agriculture and Nutrition (TiHAN) on the IIT Hyderabad campus, twenty‑five rural women received certificates for completing the first cohort of FlySakhi – Drone Queens of Bharat. The programme, themed “Empowering Women Entrepreneurs through Agricultural Drone Technology”, was designed to train participants not only as drone pilots but also as owners of rural drone‑service businesses.
FlySakhi is a collaborative effort led by the World Cooperation Economic Forum (WCOOPEF) and the Centre for Nano‑Science and Nano‑Technology Research Initiative (CNRI). TiHAN – IIT Hyderabad serves as the technology partner, while Syngenta India Pvt. Ltd. provides corporate social responsibility (CSR) support. Over the course of the training, the women learned drone operation, flight safety, multipurpose agricultural and rural applications, and the drone‑as‑a‑Service (DaaS) business model.
Upon graduation, each participant is authorized to offer fee‑for‑service drone solutions to farmers, cooperatives and farmer‑producer organisations (FPOs). A press release accompanying the event noted that graduates can be linked to existing cooperatives, self‑help groups and FPOs, ensuring that drone assets and earnings remain within community‑owned structures.
Syngenta India’s Business Sustainability & Corporate Affairs Head, Sangeeta Dawar, highlighted the broader impact, stating, “The future of agriculture depends not only on scientific innovation and access to modern solutions, but also on building knowledge, skills and awareness among the people who are at the heart of this sector.” The graduation marks a step toward integrating advanced technology with grassroots agricultural practices while promoting women’s economic empowerment in rural India.
Analysts view the initiative as a model for scaling inclusive agri‑tech solutions, noting that community‑linked drone services can improve crop monitoring, pesticide application and yield forecasting, thereby increasing productivity and reducing input costs for smallholder farmers.