Meet Kiran Ahirwar, Madhya Pradesh’s ‘Drone Didi’ who became a lakhpati

Kiran Ahirwar with Jyotiraditya Scindia (screenshot)

When Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia recently took the controls of an agricultural drone in a village, Madhya Pradesh, it was not just the machine that caught attention. Standing beside him was Kiran Ahirwar, a woman from Guna's Pagara village who had taught herself to be an expert with technology that is still new in India's rural regions.Meet Kiran Ahirwar who is getting media attention and politician praise for all the right reasons. On September 18, Kiran demonstrated how she operates an agricultural drone during Scindia's visit to Barkheda Gird in Guna.The Union minister watched her in awe operate the drone, flew it himself under her guidance and then praised her openly. According to DD News, Scindia praised Kiran's technical proficiency and confidence.Addressing the media and the crowd, the minister said, “Kiran ne aaj apna hunar dikhaya aur puri tarah se apne NaMo Drone Didi ka jacket pehen ke, topi pehen ke. Mujhe gaon ki mahila nahi dikh rahi thi, mujhe to plane ki pilot dikh rahi thi.”(“Kiran demonstrated her skills today, wearing her NaMo Drone Didi jacket and cap. I couldn’t see a village woman; I could see a pilot flying a plane.”)Who is Kiran Ahirwar?

Flying drone (Screenshot)

For Kiran, learning to fly a drone is only one part of her bigger journey. She is known as a ‘Namo Drone Didi’ and a ‘Lakhpati Didi’. These two identities together tell the story of how women in rural India are moving beyond traditional livelihood activities.

Kiran’s story is one of the best examples of how women across rural regions are inspired to start their own businesses and earn their own money.Entering the world of dronesKiran is a member of the Vansh Self-Help Group in Pagara village, under the Madhya Pradesh State Rural Livelihood Mission. Her journey began with vermicomposting and organic farming. These activities helped her build an income and eventually become a Lakhpati Didi.Then she entered the NaMo Didi Drone Yojna. Her work includes operating an agricultural drone. As per several media reports, Kiran earns nearly ₹12,000 to ₹15,000 a month through her different livelihood activities, including vermicomposting, organic farming and work connected with the Namo Drone initiative.Government’s ‘Drone Didi’ initiative

Drone didi, Kiran (Screenshot)

Kiran received a drone under the Prime Minister Women Farmer Drone Centre initiative and underwent 10 days of free training in Bhopal and Indore.

The idea behind the government's Namo Drone Didi scheme is to train women from self-help groups to operate drones and provide agricultural services to farmers, including the spraying of fertilisers and pesticides.Kiran now shares her knowledge with other farmers. Reports identify her as a master trainer who has taught more than 125 farmers about organic farming. Today, she is more than a drone operator. She is becoming someone other women and farmers can approach to learn new ways of doing things.Meeting Scindia

Giving drone training (screenshot)

In Barkheda Gird, Kiran stood in a field and demonstrated the drone's operation before the Union minister. Scindia then took the controls himself. That is perhaps the most powerful part of the Drone Didi story.Kiran's journey does not suggest that women have to leave farming or village life behind to enter the technology sector. Instead, it shows how technology can become an extension of rural livelihoods.Kiran's journey teaches us that a woman working in a village can become a farmer, entrepreneur, trainer and technology operator.