The new drone policy: A welcome step

Adv Rahul Totala

The Ministry of Civil Aviation through a notification dated 25th August, 2021 formalized the Drone Rules, 2021 that supersede the Unmanned Aircraft System Rules, 2021 which were viewed by the users and stakeholders as being cumbersome, restrictive and a possible hurdle in the country’s way of becoming a “drone hub.” To put it simply, the new Drone Rules cut through the long list of approvals and compliances that existed until now in the operations of drones in India and are an attempt to simplify the regime. The most significant changes that have been brought about with these Rules are as follows:

a.Forms and fees: The number of forms required to be submitted have been reduced from 25 to 5 and the types of fees payable have been reduced from a massive 72 to 4.

b.Registration: A new Digital Sky Platform will be developed by the Ministry for the registration and compliances required under the Rules. This will significantly reduce human interference and the permissions will effectively be self-generated. Nano and model drones (generally used for educational and recreational purposes) are exempt from certification and registration.

c.Wider airspace: The Rules classify flying zones into green, yellow and red zones that lay down the perimeter within which drones can or cannot be operated. No permission will be required for operating drones in the green zone.

d.Unique identification number: Drones operating in India shall be allotted this number during registration. However, drones if imported or manufactured only for export purpose, will not require the identification number.

e.Penalties: The maximum penalty for violations has been reduced to Rs 1lakh.

f.Drone promotion council: It will be set up to facilitate a business-friendly regime and organize competitive events involving unmanned aircraft systems.

Our view: We believe that the new Rules are a significant step towards encouraging the use of unmanned aircraft systems beyond the conventional purposes. The setting up of “drone corridors” will largely change the logistics and transportation landscape of the country and in turn open the doors for engineering innovations and technology.