Background:
- In August 2018, India had announced the release of its Civil Aviation Regulations (CAR) to enable safe flying of Remotely Piloted Aerial Systems (RPAS), popularly referred to as drones in India.
- Now, these regulations came in effect from December 1. Nano drones in India can start flying legally from December 1. For micro and above categories, operators and pilots are required to register on the Digital Sky Portal.
Key features of Drone Regulations 1.0 are:
- There are 5 categories of RPAS categorized by weight (Nano, Micro, Small, Medium and Large).
- Operational/ Procedural Requirements:
- All RPAS except Nano and those owned by NTRO, ARC and Central Intelligence Agencies are to be registered and issued with Unique Identification Number (UIN).
- Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit (UAOP) shall be required for RPA operators except for Nano RPAS operating below 50 ft., micro RPAS operating below 200 ft., and those owned by NTRO, ARC and Central Intelligence Agencies.
- As of now, RPAS to operate within visual line of sight (VLoS), during day time only, and upto maximum 400 ft. altitude.
- Operations through Digital Platform:
- The Digital Sky Platform has been developed as the national unmanned traffic management (UTM) platform that implements “No Permission, No Take-off” (NPNT) for registering and operating drones.
- Users will be required to do a one-time registration of their drones, pilots and owners.
- For every flight (exempted for Nano category), users will have to take permission to fly on a mobile app and an automated process permits or denies the request instantly.
- The regulation defines ‘No Drone Zones’ around airports; near international border, Vijay Chowk in Delhi; State Secretariat Complex in State Capitals, strategic locations etc.
- The enforcement actions are suspension/ cancellation of UIN/ UAOP in case of violation of regulatory provisions; penalties under Aircraft Act 1934 and under relevant section of IPCs.
- Application:
- Drones are allowed for taking photographs, conducting surveys, spraying of pesticides and delivery of relief material during a natural disaster on a case-by-case basis.
- The rules bar use of drones for delivery of items.
Way ahead: Drone Regulations 2.0
- The Minister for Civil Aviation has constituted a task-force on the recommendation of Drone Policy 2.0 under the chairmanship of the Minister of State. This task-force is expected to release their final report by the end of this year.
- Drone 2.0 framework for RPAS are expected to include regulatory architecture for autonomous flying, delivery via drones and beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flights.
