Prime Minister Narendra Modi kicked off the Namo Drone Didi Yojana in 2023 to help women gain financial power using cutting-edge drone technology. In Gujarat, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel’s team has rallied self-help groups and Sakhi Mandals to guide rural women toward self-reliance through this program, as a recent release highlights.
The initiative equips women-led self-help groups under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) and cluster-level federations with drones for farming tasks. It builds strong custom hiring centers, cuts down on labor and input costs, opens steady income streams for drone pilots and technicians, and ramps up crop productivity to lift farmers’ earnings.
Take Sonalben Pambhar from Nanavada village in Rajkot district’s Paddhari taluka. “Earlier, I just managed my home,” she recalls. But the Mission Mangalam team held a village meeting to spotlight the Namo Drone Didi scheme. Curious, Sonalben joined a 15-day training session in Pune, Maharashtra, in December 2023, followed by more hands-on lessons from IFFCO in Rajkot. She got her own drone, and the tech team showed her the ropes. On June 10, 2024, she nailed her first job, spraying cotton and groundnut fields in her village. Word spread fast—farmers lined up for her services. In the past year, she’s helped 1,740 farmers and pocketed ₹15,38,500. Thanks to her self-help group, she’s not just a Drone Didi but a proud Lakhpati Didi too. This financial freedom lets her support her family better and earn respect at home and in the community. “I’m so thankful to the Mission Mangalam Department and Narendra Modi for this scheme,” she adds.
Bhavnaben Chaudhary from Varsada village in Banaskantha district’s Kankrej taluka shares a similar story. With a BA under her belt, she handles agriculture and animal husbandry while staying active in her Shri Sakhi Mandal under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM). “None of us in the village knew about drones before,” she says. She first heard about them from the NRLM office at the district and taluka levels and jumped at the chance to train. Bhavnaben finished 15 days of residential drone training at Ahmedabad’s Indus University through GNFC Bharuch, passed her pilot exam to get licensed, and started spraying pesticides on local farms. Now, she’s the go-to Drone Didi in her village, pulling in over ₹50,000 a month. “This work has given me respect and true independence. I’m grateful to the Namo Drone Didi Yojana and Narendra Modi for the opportunity,” she says.
The Namo Drone Didi Yojana is changing lives for rural women in Gujarat. It delivers financial independence, boosts confidence, and turns them into community role models. Their grit and success capture the heart of women empowerment and point to a self-reliant future ahead, the release notes.
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