New Delhi: The drone service sector shows tremendous promise and will provide about one lakh jobs in the next four to five years, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Friday.

 "We carried out a productivity-linked programme for the drone sector, where a nascent industry of drone manufacturing, with a total revenue of Rs 60 crore,  was given an incentive of Rs 120 crore over the next three years," the minister said at an Indo-American Chamber of Commerce event (IACC).

The incentive for a maker of drones and drone components under the PLI plan, which was announced last year, will be 20% of the value addition achieved by the company over the next three years. The annual sales revenue from drones and drone components (net of GST) is subtracted from the acquisition cost of drones and drone components (net of GST). The names of 14 drone firms that have been chosen as PLI beneficiaries have been announced by the ministry.

"We look at a rapid expansion of about Rs 5,000 crore in terms of investment into the drone manufacturing industry," Scindia said on Friday. "We expect to create 1,00,000 employment in the drone service sector over the next four to five years." It's a region with a lot of potential," he said.

India is rapidly urbanising, with cities accounting for 75% of national income by 2031, he said, adding that transportation and logistics will be critical in determining India's fate in the following decade. The country now has around 140 airports, with the government planning to double that number in the next four to five years, he said.

He stated that the country's commercial fleet will grow from 710 planes now to 1,200 planes in the next five years. He also stated that the government intends to swiftly expand its flying training organizations, which will grow from 34 to 58 in the next few years.

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