Eight megaphone-equipped ideaForge Q6 V2 drones support crowd monitoring and public address along the 250-kilometer route to Pandharpur, the second consecutive year the company has backed the pilgrimage.
ideaForge Technology Limited has deployed eight Q6 V2 drones with the Solapur Rural Police for the ongoing Pandharpur Wari. The company announced the deployment July 24, 2026. Each aircraft carries a megaphone attachment for aerial surveillance, crowd monitoring and real-time public address. The pilgrimage drew more than 30 lakh (3 million) warkaris this year. It marks the second consecutive year ideaForge has supported the Wari.
The Pandharpur Wari pilgrimage
The Pandharpur Wari is a nearly 800-year-old annual pilgrimage. Millions of devotees, known as warkaris, walk about 250 kilometers (155 miles) to Pandharpur in Solapur district to seek the darshan of Lord Vitthal. The pilgrimage centers on the palkis, or palanquins, of revered saints. Sant Dnyaneshwar’s palki departs from Alandi, and Sant Tukaram’s palki from Dehu. The main Yatra spans about 21 days, culminating on Ashadhi Ekadashi, a day dedicated to Lord Vitthal and Rukmini. Devotees walk together singing hymns and dancing throughout the route. This year’s footfall of over 30 lakh (3 million) warkaris underscores the scale of coordination required to manage the pilgrimage safely.
ideaForge Q6 V2 drones on the route
A gathering this large, moving on foot for three weeks, is difficult to track through fixed infrastructure alone. The ideaForge Q6 V2 drones provide continuous aerial oversight of pilgrim movement across the corridor. Integrated megaphone systems let police issue real-time announcements and directions from the air. That capability helps guide pilgrim flow and respond quickly to congestion or safety concerns.
The deployment was carried out with ideaForge’s channel partner Bluesky Amida Pvt. Ltd. It operates under the guidance of Atul Kulkarni, superintendent of police for Solapur Rural. Bluesky is integrating AI-based video analytics into the live feeds, adding automated crowd-monitoring capability. ideaForge manages the telemetry, back-end server infrastructure and live-streaming through its BlueFire Live platform. The setup gives the police control room uninterrupted real-time visibility into on-ground conditions throughout the Wari.
Ashesh Mathur on returning to the Wari
“A pilgrimage this old and personal needs technology that quietly protects it. When we first supported the Wari last year, we set out to show our systems could keep pace with a procession that moves every single day. This year, we’re returning as a partner the police department already knows and trusts and that familiarity means less time spent re-learning the route and more time spent watching it closely. Every year we do this, we understand a little more about how this pilgrimage moves, where the crowd tends to bunch up, where the terrain makes visibility harder, where a few extra minutes of warning can change how quickly help arrives. That knowledge is arguably the most valuable thing we bring back each year. With ‘Eyes in the sky’ we make sure nothing on that 250-kilometre route goes unseen, so that the millions who walk it can focus on their faith and not on the risks around them,” said Ashesh Mathur, assistant general manager for sales at ideaForge Technology Limited.
The Wari deployment builds on ideaForge’s ongoing work with police and public-safety agencies across India. The company supports the management of large civil operations through indigenous drone technology. ideaForge ranks third globally among top dual-use drone manufacturers, according to Drone Industry Insights. Its drones have completed more than 1 million customer missions, with an ideaForge aircraft taking off every three minutes.
More information is available at ideaForge Technology Limited.
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