India’s new drone rules

Published: 31st Aug, 2021

Context

The central government has notified the Drone Rules 2021, a much more liberalized regime for unmanned aircraft systems than what existed previously.

What is in the new rules?

Several requirements and approvals have been abolished and this isexpected to make drone operations simpler for civilian drone operators.
The total number of forms that were to be filled has been reducedfrom 25 to five.
The total number of fees that are to be paid before being able tooperate drones has been reduced from 72to just four.
The various approvals that were required, such as
- Unique authorization number
- Unique prototype identification number
- Certificate of manufacturing
Airworthiness, certificate of conformance, certificate ofmaintenance, import clearance, acceptance of existing drones, operator permit,authorization of R&D organization, student remote pilot licence, remotepilot instructor authorisation, and drone port authorization etc have been abolished.
The quantum of fees, which was earlier linked to the size ofdrones, has been reduced and delinked from the size.
- For example, the remote pilot license fee, which was Rs 3,000 for a large sizedrone, has been reduced to Rs 100 — which is the fee for all categories ofdrones.

Other various relaxations

The yellow zone, which was earlier a 45 km zone from the airport perimeter, has now been reduced to a 12 km zone, meaning that outside of a 12 km radius of an airport perimeter, it would be a green zone, where drone operators no longer need permission to fly.
It has been specified that coverage of drones has increased from 300 kilograms to 500 kilograms to include heavy payload-carrying drones and drone taxis.

Significance of the new rules:

It highlights the government’s intent to allow the use of drones while at the same time ensuring security from rogue drones through the anti-rogue drone framework that was announced in 2019.
The rules are based on the premise of trust and self-certification.
The Rules will tremendously help start-ups and our youth working in this sector. It will open up new possibilities for innovation & business.
It will help leverage India’s strengths in innovation, technology & engineering to make India a drone hub.

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