Pune-based Niharika Kolte Alekar’s penchant for solving hard-sticky problems led her to explore the possibility of using drones to inspect the insides of boilers, tanks, chimneys, and other confined spaces. Alekar set up her startup Volar Alta in February 2020 with the idea of using drones in confined spaces and reducing the risks individuals face doing this job.
Niharika Kolte Alekar started her career as an investment banker (part of the mergers and acquisitions team at PwC & KPMG) before venturing into entrepreneurship/ She launched Volar Alta with a vision to use technology to upgrade the inspection process while reducing the risk of accidents and injuries. Volar Alta is a one-stopshop for drone-based inspections, data processing, and analysis for the Infrastructure space.
Achievements
- Her venture received support from European giant Alstom and Consulting firm Accenture. Alstom had awarded a grant of Rs 1.5 crores to 10 startups including Volar Alta as part of its sustainability incubation program.
- Various big companies across the cement, chemical, cement, power, and steel industries in India successfully use Alekar’s innovative idea.
- She was selected as the winner of the Pune Chapter of the Global Pitch Competition in August 2023.
- She was honored by Women and Drones with the “Spright Entrepreneurship Award” at the Women to Watch Global Awards 2022, held at the CES technology festival in Vegas, USA.
- She is part of the Cornell Maha60 2022 cohort & TiE Nurture 10 program
Alekar is now working on using AI and ML to automate inspections and facilitate predictive maintenance.
