ICMR delivers medications via drone across rough Himachal terrain

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) successfully transported more than 100 units of essential medications for 20 km in Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh using a drone on Thursday as part of a feasibility study, officials said.

In line with the national mission to advance India's drone ecosystem, the ICMR is currently conducting a feasibility study in Lahaul and Spiti district to explore the transportation of vital medical resources, including medications, diagnostic blood samples and sputum, via drones.

Drones are playing an increasingly critical role in healthcare, particularly in emergency response scenarios, where they facilitate the swift delivery of vaccines, medications and other essential supplies to remote and inaccessible areas, the ICMR said in a statement.

The ICMR's endeavour aims to streamline the distribution of essential medical provisions from regional hospitals in Keylong to more than eight primary health centres (PHCs) in the region.

"During the inaugural flight, the drone successfully transported more than 100 units of essential medications, including antibiotics, antipyretics and multivitamins, from the police grounds in Keylong to the Tholang PHC, which is approximately 20 kilometres away from the district hospital," the statement said.

On its return journey, the drone carried TB sputum samples, blood samples and various diagnostic specimens back to the Keylong centre for thorough analysis.

The round trip, which takes two hours by road and is often delayed due to snowfall, took around 26 minutes in total with the drone, the statement said.

The ICMR, which has consistently led the way in delivering vital medical supplies via drones to challenging-to-access regions such as Manipur and Nagaland, will conduct several test flights to different PHCs in the upcoming days, it stated.

ICMR Director-General Dr Rajiv Bahl said, "This 'i-DRONE' was first used during Covid-19 pandemic by ICMR for distributing vaccines to unreachable areas. Earlier this year, we were able to successfully complete the trials for the delivery of blood and blood-related products, which are supposed to be kept at a low temperature."

"In the present study, we are aiming to deliver the medications and diagnostic samples at subzero temperature areas and difficult regions with altitudes over 12,000 ft. This is an initiative towards making an impact in the lives of people residing in remote areas," he said.