ISLAMABAD-Federal Minister for Science and Technology, Chaudhry Fawad Hussain Friday said Pakistan was working on agriculture drones which were essential to set the sector on modern lines.
Soon a Drone Policy would be formulated, he said while talking to the media persons in Sihala.
He said the National Radio and Telecommunication Corporation (NRTC) had already been tasked to focus on manufacturing drones.
Initially, 30 drones would be used to spray in fields for locust control as effective tool against the insect, he said adding spraying through big aeroplanes in field was not possible, he said.
Explaining his idea, the minister said 25 drones would spray against locust in a big area at a time. "Around 25 drones can easily spray at 10 to 20 acre land area", he said.
Chaudhry Fawad said that drones technology would also be used for surveillance on Islamabad and Motorway police. While use of drones in Karachi would help reduce the increasing street crimes, he added.
In Pakistan, we were facing issues regarding drone regulatory however talks on this issue were under progress, he said.
Before the Coronavirus outbreak, we were not producing any of the equipment on our own either it was gloves, masks or protective shields, the minister said, adding but now the country was capable enough of manufacturing 99 percent of the medical equipment to deal with this challenge.
"We are not only catering the local needs but Pakistan has now become a major exporter of all these products", Chaudhry Fawad said.
He said after reduction in Coronavirus cases in the country, he would now talk to the relevant ministries of health, commerce and industries regarding lifting ban on N-95 masks and Personal Protective Equipment exports.
He said the Ministry of Science and Technology had set a target to replace imports worth three billion dollars during the next three to five years.
The minister said such an impression about Pakistan lagging behind in the technology sector was absolutely incorrect.