RULES TO OPERATE DRONES IN INDIA EASED

„ The Drone Rules, 2021, were issued on Wednesday. They supersede the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Rules, 2021, which had come into force on March 12

„ The fee has been reduced to nominal levels and de-linked from the drone size

„ Fee for a remote pilot license has been reduced from Rs 3,000 to Rs 100 and it is valid for 10 years

The Ministry of Civil Aviation has eased the rules regarding drone operations in the country by reducing the number of forms that need to be filled to operate them from 25 to 5 and decreasing the types of fees charged from the operator from 72 to 4

„ The rules have also abolished the requirement of certificate of conformance, certificate of maintenance, import clearance, acceptance of existing drones, operator permit, authorisation of R&D organisation and student remote pilot licence

No flight permission will be required for up to 400 feet in “green zones” and up to 200 feet in the area between 8 and 12 km from the airport perimeter

„ Other approvals such as unique authorisation number, unique prototype identification number and certificate of manufacturing and airworthiness have also been abolished

„ No pilot licence required for micro drones (for non-commercial use), nano drones. Maximum penalty for violations reduced to Rs 1L

„ Type certificate and unique identification number will be required only when a drone is to be operated in India