A Vertiplane X3 drone was used to deliver 2kg package of anti-tubercular drugs to a district hospital in Tehri Garhwal of Uttarakhand during the trial.
The aerial distance of nearly 40 kilometres between the helipad at AIIMS and the hospital was covered in 30 minutes.
The project will calculate the cost of effectiveness of delivering not only medicines but sputum samples to laboratories to support the country’s programme to eliminate TB by 2025.
This is not the first time a drone has been used to transport medical supplies.
Another pilot was carried out by a Bangalore based startup in Arunachal Pradesh to deliver medicines.
Other than that, there are e-pharmacies that have also introduced drone delivery.