Pune-based drone startup DroneAcharya Aerial Innovations, which has attracted prominent investors such as Shankar Sharma, Mangina Srinivas Rao and VC Kartik, will soon enter Dalal Street.

The price range for the company’s initial public offering (IPO) on December 13-15 is Rs 52-54. Of the 62.90 lakh shares offered for sale, 898,000 shares are reserved for high-net-worth individuals (HNI), 11.94 lakh shares are reserved for qualified institutional buyers (QIB), and 20.92 lakh shares are reserved for retail investors.

As this is an SME IPO, the lot size for retail investors is 2,000 shares with a minimum investment of Rs 1.08 lakh.

Other key investors in the startup include Harshal Mode, an angel investor in media and entertainment-focused startups, and Ashish Nanda, founder and MD of UAE-based business conglomerate Innovations Group.

Switzerland-based Wellstone Capital also took a stake in the company in a pre-IPO funding round. The startup’s shares will be listed on the BSE SME exchange, and the proceeds will be mainly used to buy and manufacture drones and sensors.

According to a press release, DroneAcharya AI is one of the first private company to receive an RPTO (Remote Pilot Training Organisation) license from the DGCA (Directorate of Civil Aviation) in 2022. Since March 2022, the company has trained over 180 drone pilots.

In Q1FY23, it reported a gross revenue of Rs 3.09 crore and a net profit of Rs 72.06 lakh. The company plans to manufacture indigenous drones that are 100% custom-built for land and underwater surveying services.