Food delivery via drones could soon be a reality in India; DGCA gives nod for trials

In an unprecedented move, Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has given a d to Zomato, Swiggy and Dunzo to start testing beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drones for deliveries. As per sources, budget airline SpiceJet, Reliance-backed drone startup Asteria Aero, Zomato, Swiggy and Dunzo are among 13 consortia that have received approvals from aviation regulator to test fly drones.

Last year, India anunced its plans to allow experimental long-range drone flights. tests are likely to begin in first week of July. This will be India's first step to developing local drone-based services. In May, budget airline SpiceJet said that it received permission to conduct drone trials. SpiceXpress, airline's cargo arm, will focus on delivering medical emergency parcels and essential supplies including perishables after trials.

Last year, popular food delivery startup Zomato successfully completed a test delivery using drones in India. drone carried a payload of 5 kg covered 5 kms in 10 minutes, said Deepinder Goyal, CEO of Zomato. drone hit a peak speed of 80 kmph. food delivery chain aims to deliver food to customers in less than 15 minutes.

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Instagram Launches Food Order Stickers With Zomato & Swiggy

Social networking service Instagram on Thursday anunced its partnership with online food delivery platforms Swiggy and Zomato to support small businesses in India amid ongoing Coronavirus crisis. Instagram also anunced launch of  'food order stickers' in India that will help businesses from food industry to stay in touch with ir customers.

food industry is looking for ways to get back to business, as restrictions imposed during lockdown are being relaxed. Through this initiative, restaurants can share Instagram’s new food order sticker on ir stories, and users can tap to place ir orders through Swiggy and Zomato website.

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