The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology (MAKAUT) formerly known as West Bengal University of Technology (WBUT) is planning to introduce drone operation training course. The decision came after the use of Drones gained popularity in Kolkata for city planning and problem-solving in various sectors such as electricity supply and healthcare. For this reason, trained engineering professionals for drone operations are required but the field has a significant lack of skilled drone operators. For this reason, MAKAUT is introducing Drone Operations in its syllabus.
Talking about the same the Vice Chancellor of the State-run Technological Institute, Mr Saikat Maitra informed that in this era of Green Cities and Smart Cities. Many countries have started using drones for effective conducting of daily works. In some cities, parcel and food delivery are also being conducted using drones. This is why the University is introducing a drone operating course to produce skilled engineers who are efficient in this technology. Prof. Maitra added that not only abroad, recently, the Eastern Railways have also started maintenance and track assessment jobs with the help of drones.
The Hon’ble Mayor of Kolkata, Mr Firhad Hakim expressed his views on the same and said that the implementation of drones will be useful to assess and identify the underground conditions of the city. He informed that being an ancient city of the early British era, the Municipal Corporation does not have most of the maps of underground piping and sewage system. This creates a problem as it becomes necessary to dig a vast area to locate the problem. He said, “The technology will prove to be beneficial for the city of Kolkata. We have used drones for identifying the presence of Mosquito Larva to address the problem of Dengue breakout. But we don’t have any underground x-ray facilities for the city. If the course is introduced it will be beneficial for both KMDA (Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority) and CESC (Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation).”
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The DGCA (Director General of Civil Aviation) has waived off the restrictions of flying drones by the normal citizens in India. The technological experts believe that it will make drones more relevant in India for day-to-day works just like the western countries. The experts informed the media that the Army has its own training institute for Drone operations for defence related causes and the use of drones are very popular among the Army. The University authority, however, thinks that the civilians lack the training and skill for drone operations. For which, they decided to introduce the course in MAKAUT.
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MAKAUT has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a private academic institution to conduct Drone Operation courses. The private institute will provide practical training for Drone Operations. The Director of the Private Institute, Sumit Agarwal said, “Drones can help to do a lot of work in a short timespan. There will be demand for skilled drone operators in future. For which, the drone training will be conducted along with the students’ regular engineering studies.
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