GREEN LIGHT FOR DRONES, WITH STIFF RESTRICTIONS

A legal framework has finally been set for the use of drones. From December, drones can be used for mapping, surveying and photography.

However, following global norms, using drones to deliver goods and food items has not been approved which may hinder its commercial usage.

Jayant Sinha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation, while announcing the policy indicated that this was done keeping in mind the security aspect and the government will be looking to liberalise the guidelines in future.

E- commerce major Amazon has used a drone to deliver a bag of popcorn to an address in rural England, in the first commercial outing for a technology that is the US group’s boldest step towards automating deliveries.

“There are opportunities for our aviation sector and for India's start-up industry as India is set to become a global leader as far as drone ecosystem is concerned. It's important for us to have a policy roadmap and regulations that support growth of the drone ecosystem,” Sinha said.

According to the policy unveiled by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), which will be the regulating agency for such vehicles, drones have been classified into four parts based on their weight.

For the lightest category Nano, a payload of up to 250 grams and flight to a maximum height of 50 feet have been approved. A user need not seek prior approval for operating a nano drone.

However, for an equipment which is more than 250 gm, the operator has to get security clearance each time the drone is operated.

The government has approved a full digital ecosystem for granting permission for use of drones with an intention to make life easier. Termed ‘No permission-No Take Off,” the software programme will enable the user to seek approval from DGCA, home ministry, security agencies, and the Indian Air Force for all kinds of license.

“What we intend to do is to connect one police station in a district to the digital system. Any person who intends to use drones can comply with the norms digitally to seek approval,” Civil Aviation Secretary Rajiv Nayan Choubey said.

Drone manufacturers, however, said the government has been conservative in its policy. An executive of a Bengaluru-based drone manufacturer said that any drone intended for commercial use will invariably weigh more than 2 kg and will fall in the bracket of medium to large category needing permission every time it is operated.

Also, a blanket restriction on the height limit of 400 feet will be difficult to follow if it is to be used for surveying and mapping. “With such restrictions, the use of drones would remain limited to amateur usage like wedding photography and recreational use,” the person said.

Sinha said that the government will look to liberalise its usage in future terming the current policy as 1.0. “We will form a task force on the usage of drones and continuously update the regulations in future,” he said.