MeitY and Drone Federation India launched NIDAR 2.0 under the SwaYaan initiative to promote indigenous drone technologies, autonomous systems and innovation with rewards exceeding ₹65 lakh.

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• MeitY, in collaboration with Drone Federation India, launched NIDAR 2.0 for 2026–27 to encourage student-led innovation in autonomous drones and indigenous technologies across India.
• The flagship programme operates under the SwaYaan initiative and focuses on strengthening India’s self-reliant drone ecosystem using the indigenous VEGA microprocessor developed by C-DAC.
• NIDAR 2.0 features a prize pool exceeding ₹65 lakh along with startup incubation, internships, cloud computing credits and software support for selected student teams.
• The competition includes two innovation tracks covering autonomous drone development for real-world missions and indigenous drone component design powered by India’s VEGA processor technology.
• Participants in the Drone Innovation track will develop autonomous systems capable of disaster response, survivor detection, medical supply delivery, indoor navigation and intelligent decision-making.
• The Component Innovation track encourages development of indigenous flight controllers, autopilot systems, drone electronics and advanced control platforms built entirely on Indian hardware technologies.
• The top 100 teams will receive two VEGA processor development kits each, enabling prototype development, testing, integration and further advancement of innovative drone technologies.
• NIDAR 2.0 supports the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat and Viksit Bharat 2047 by promoting research, entrepreneurship, semiconductor development and industry-academia collaboration in drone technology.