Commercial Drone Policy | Latest Burning Issue

WHAT JUST HAPPENED?

Government of India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation announced guidelines for remotely piloted aircraft — or drones as they are more commonly known — which will come into effect from 1 December, aiming to open up an array of opportunities in the Indian civil aviation sector.

BASICS •What is a drone?

In technical terms, a drone aircraft is an unmanned aerial vehicle, commonly referred to as a UAV. That means it’s an aircraft, of any size or type, that flies by itself, without an onboard pilot or passengers. Think of it as a robot plane, controlled either autonomously or via remote control.

USES OF DRONES USED OF DRONES

Drones are used in situations where manned flight is considered too risky or difficult. Drones can fly autonomously without a human in control and work without pilots on board, whose flight (speed, navigation, aerobatics, etc) are controlled by onboard computers.
Uses of drones

Mapping
Survey
Commercial photography
Security risk
Monitoring livestock by the farmers
Currently,

e-commerce ventures are planning to use these to deliver goods to their consumers.

USES OF DRONES INEFFECTIVE MEASURES BY THE STATE AND CENTRAL GOVERNMENT

A study by Observer Research Foundation (ORF) shows that adhoc measures which were taken by state and central government, have been ineffective in India as questions of privacy and trespassing, air traffic, terrorist threat management, and legal liability have not been addressed properly. Earlier, the drones were widely used by wedding videographers to capture the activities despite being banned by the Government of India.

NOTIFICATIONS FOR BANNING DRONES IN INDIA

October 7, 2014
DGCA issued a notification on the subject stating that till such regulations are issued, no non-government agency, organisation, or an individual will launch a UAV in Indian Civil Airspace for any purpose whatsoever.

NOTIFICATIONS FOR BANNING DRONES IN INDIA

April 21, 2016
Two years later, first drafts of the guidelines were issued for the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for obtaining Unique Identification Number (UIN)
November 2017
After a year-and-a-half of inactivity, the DGCA again issued a new set of guidelines in November 2017 highlighting requirements for the Operation of Civil Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS)

RESTRICTIONS TO FLY DRONES IN INDIA

RPAs or drones cannot be flown within 5km of the perimeters of the airports in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad and within 3km from the perimeter of any other airport.
According to the regulations, they cannot be operated in strategic locations, vital and military installations and Vijay Chowk in Delhi including wedding photography
They cannot be operated within 25km from international border which includes Line of Control (LoC), Line of Actual Control (LAC) and Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL).
These drones cannot be operated from a mobile platform such as a moving vehicle, ship or aircraft as well. Flying drones in eco-sensitive zones around National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries are not allowed without prior permission.

VIOLATIONS OF THESE REGULATIONS

Those who violate the rules and regulations will be acted upon several sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Aircraft Act 1934.
What do the Aircraft Act 1934 states?
It is an act to make better provision for the control of the manufacture, possession, use, operation, sale, import and export of aircraft.

CAN DRONES REDUCE HUMAN LABOUR? INDIA GETS ITS FIRST DRONE POLICY

Unveiling the “Drone Regulations 1.0” in New Delhi, Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu said that the guidelines would help foster technology and innovation in the development of drones — devices which have an extensive range of applications ranging from disaster relief to agriculture.

NOTES

“The drone market in India holds the potential of hitting over $1 trillion. We plan to develop drone manufacturing not only for the domestic market but abroad as well,” Prabhu said, adding that India’s expertise in technology is characterised by its capacity to devise low-cost solutions.
The minister said that these drone regulations had taken so long to be formed because of various safety and security issues that needed to be sorted out.

REASON FOR DELAY IN POLICY

His ministry, however, stated three specific reasons for these regulations to have taken so long to be formulated:

Drone technologies have been evolving very rapidly.
Many countries are still experimenting with their drone regulations and no ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) stands have been developed.
India’s security environment necessitates extra precautions.

WHO CAN FLY A DRONE?

Drone operations in India will be controlled by a licence-permission system quite like the regulations that govern driving cars. Just like a driving license, you will need an Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit in order to pilot a drone. Similarly, your drone, like your car, will need to be registered with the government and will be issued with a Unique Identification Number.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

The commercial use of drones across sectors such as agriculture, health and disaster relief under new regulations will come into force from December 1, but the delivery of payload, including food items, will not be allowed as of now The FAQs released by the ministry also specify that delivery of items using drones is “not allowed as of now”. Government agencies, however, can use drones for making deliveries

NOTES

Further, while drones can be used for agricultural purpose, they cannot be used for spraying pesticides until specifically cleared. Besides, carriage of explosives, animals and human payload are not allowed.

CAN YOU FLY A DRONE ANYWHERE?

Not at all. • The drone regulations specify three zones where people can operate unmanned aerial vehicles: Red, yellow and green.

FLYING ZONES

Drones will not be allowed in the red zone. The zone includes the airspace around airports, near international borders, military installations and other strategic locations. Drone flying will also not be permitted over Vijay Chowk (a Delhi neighbourhood close to Parliament and Rashtrapati Bhavan) and state secretariats in respective state capitals.
The yellow zone will delineate controlled airspace. Flying a drone in the yellow drone will require the filing of a flight plan and an air defence clearance certificate. The green zone will be uncontrolled airspace.

DIGITAL SKY PLATFORM

Before a flight, drone operators will have to apply for permission on the app. The request, the government says, will be accepted or denied instantaneously, as long as you are in the green zone.
You will have to seek a digital permit every time you intend to fly a drone. If the Digital Sky Platform denies your request, your drone’s no-permission-no-take-off system will prevent it from taking off.

THE DRONE REGULATION

Drones cannot be flown during the night, for example, nor can they be flown beyond the pilot’s line-of-sight.
Drones will only be allowed to fly up to an altitude of 400 feet and, like we explained earlier, cannot be flown unless a digital permit has been granted for that specific flight.