Drone Technology and Regulations in India.

In 2018, the Centre came up with the first set of norms Drone Regulations 1.0 for visual line-of-sight daytime-only and maximum of 400 ft altitude operations of Drones. Ministry of Civil Aviation announced a scheme providing a window up to January 31, 2020 for voluntary registration of all drones and their operators. On successful submission of voluntary disclosure of possessing drone, a Drone Acknowledgement Number (DAN) and an Ownership Acknowledgement Number (OAN) will be issued online.  

  • Users will be required to do a one-time registration of their drones, pilots and owners. For every flight (exempted for the nano category), users will be required to ask for permission to fly on a mobile app and an automated process permits or denies the request instantly. 
  • A newly launched, first-of-its-kind national unmanned traffic management mechanism called the “Digital Sky Platform” — a live platform for registration of manufacturers and operators of drones. Work for the development and hosting of the Digital Sky Platform was awarded by the Airports Authority of India (AAI)
  •  This platform allows operators to apply for a Unique Identification Number (UIN) — akin to the registration plate of a car — that needs to be issued for all drones (with the exception of the smallest category), and Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit online for approval by the civil aviation regulator.
  •  A ‘National Counter Rogue Drone Guidelines’, that seeks to lay down measures to be deployed in response to threats to vital installations from unmanned aircraft systems, which was in the works, is now expedited.
  • India has a ‘No Permission-No Takeoff’ (NPNT) clause for aerial unmanned objects, which implies that a drone cannot be operated in Indian skies unless the regulatory permission is received through the Digital Sky Platform. 
  • The pilot also needs certification, requiring a remote pilot licence or an ‘Unmanned Aerial Operator Permit’ (UAOP) before operating a drone.
  • The Centre’s regulatory policy on the use of drones classifies them based on their total weight — ‘nano’ (up to 250 grams), ‘micro’ (250 g to 2 kg), ‘small’ (2-25 kg), ‘medium’ (25-150 kg) and ‘large’ (over 150 kg). 
  • The Digital Sky Platform regulates all drones in the micro and higher categories 
  • The Digital Sky Platform divides the Indian airspace into three broad categories — Red, Yellow and Green. 
    • Red denotes “no fly zone” (includes airspace near international borders, vital assets like Parliament House, nuclear installations, major airports);
    • Yellow signifies airspace requiring Air Defence Clearance or Air Traffic Control clearance; 
    • Green signifies unrestricted airspace zones. However, even for the Green zone, there is a need to get clearance from the Digital Sky Platform to commence operations.
  • Foreigners are currently not allowed to fly drones in India. For commercial purpose, they need to lease the drone to an Indian entity who in-turn will obtain Unique Identification Number (UIN) and UAOP from DGCA. 
  • In January 2019, a white paper on drone policy 2.0 was released, that paved the way for wider application of drones such as beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) 
  • India’s Draft Drone Policy 2.0 
    • beyond VLOS and beyond the current limit of 400 feet. 
    • drone corridors to keep commercial UAS operations out of non-segregated airspace in which manned aircraft operate.
    • droneports’ to facilitate the landing and take-off of drones. 
    • maximum life cycle for drones 
    • drone Directorate within the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). 
    • night-time drone flights. 
    • It proposes 100% FDI under automatic route 
  • Two US citizens were detained for flying a drone fitted with a camera above the high-security zone in Lutyens’s Delhi.
  • While this prohibition follows a specific security threat from terrorists, the general guidelines issued by the civil aviation regulator DGCA also lay down specific no-go areas for drones.

Types of drones

  • DGCA has identified multiple categories of drones, which can be broadly classified as ‘Nano’ (weighing up to 250 g), ‘Micro’ (more than 250 g but less than 2 kg) and ‘Small and above’ (weighing 2 kg or more).
  • Every drone that is bigger than a ‘Nano’ must obtain a unique identification number (UIN) from the aviation regulator (similar to the registration number for a car).
  • This number must be displayed on the remotely piloted aircraft. A UIN will be issued once, against a fee of Rs 1,000, and will not be issued to a foreign citizen or entity.
  • Users of bigger drones will be required to obtain a Unique Air Operator’s Permit (UAOP), similar to a driver’s licence.
  • The UIN and UAOP can be obtained from the online platform Digital Sky. The permits will be issued in less than a week.

Flying conditions

  • All drones other than those in the ‘Nano’ category must meet mandatory equipment requirements such as GPS, anti-collision light, ID plate, RFID and SIM facilities with software that ensures ‘no-permission, no-takeoff’, among other features.
  • Before flying a ‘Small’ or bigger drone, an operator has to file a flight plan, and inform the local police, so that the machine can reach a height of 400 ft or more, and use both controlled and uncontrolled airspace.
  • ‘Micro’ drones will be required to submit a flight plan only if using controlled airspace; the operator must, however, inform the local police in all cases.
  • Many drones used for amateur photography fall in this category. These aircraft will need a UIN but no UAOP, and will be allowed to climb only to a height of 200 ft.
  • ‘Nano’ drones will be able to operate freely, without any registration or permit, but their operations will be restricted to 50 ft above the ground, and to uncontrolled airspaces and enclosed premises.
  • All those requiring a UAOP must undertake a five-day training programme that will expose them to regulations, basic principles of flight, air traffic control procedures, weather and meteorology etc.
  • These operators will also have to take written tests and flight simulator tests before they are issued permits.

Only during day

  • All categories of drones must be flown in the visual line of sight, and only during daytime.
  • While all drone operations are restricted to daylight hours, photography using drones is allowed in well-lit enclosed premises.
  • But it would still be mandatory to inform the local police before flying.

No-fly zones

  • The regulator listed 12 categories of “no-drone zones”.
  • These include the area up to 5 km from the perimeters of the high-traffic airports of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
  • For other airports, the no-drone zone extends up to 3 km.
  • Drones cannot fly closer than 25 km of international borders, including the Line of Control and Line of Actual Control.
  • The area within a 5-km radius of New Delhi’s Vijay Chowk is a no-drone zone; this, however, is subject to any additional conditions/restrictions that local law enforcement agencies.

Highlights

Every drone is to be provided with a Unique Identification Number (UIN) under the scheme. GoI has opened an online portal called “digital sky” for the users to register their drones. Upon registration, the users will be provided with UIN, Unmanned Aircraft Operator Limit (UAOP), ownership acknowledgement number and Drone acknowledgement number.

Legislation

The drone owners failing to register their drones will face actions under the Aircraft act, 1934 and Indian Penal Code. The aircraft act governs aviation in India.

Significance

According to the FICCI committee on drones, there are 50,000 to 60,000 illegal drones in the country. Also, the latest drone tragedies across the world has forced the GoI to hasten its actions towards regulation of drones.

In December 2018, the world’s second busiest airport, the Heathrow airport remained closed for 3 days after multiple rogue drones were seen flying over the perimeter. Around 1000 flights were cancelled. Major General Soleimani was killed by the US military drone fired missile in Baghdad airport in January 2020.

Leave a Reply