PM Modi lauds new Drone Rules 2021; terms it a 'landmark moment' for Indian aviation

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) on Thursday released the new liberalised Drone Rules, 2021 which will provide several benefits to various sectors of the Indian economy. The new drone rules will replace the Unmanned Aircraft System Rules (UAS Rules) which came into force on March 12, 2021. Taking to Twitter, PM Modi lauded the new rules and said that it will tremendously help start-ups and the youth working in this sector. It will also open up new possibilities for innovation and business.

New liberalised Drone Rules 2021

In a press release issued by the Union Civil Aviation Ministry, several new features have been added to the UAS rules. Earlier in March 2021, the MoCA announced the UAS Rules 2021, however, due to its restrictive nature, the central government decided to repeal the rules and replace them same with the liberalised Drone Rules, 2021. 

New Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), also known as drones, offer a wide variety of benefits to all the sectors including agricultural, mining, infrastructure surveillance, emergency response, transportation, geo-spatial mapping, defence, law enforcement, and many more. Furthermore, it will be a significant contributor to employment and economic growth, especially in remote and inaccessible areas of the country. 

Speaking on the matter, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took to Twitter and spoke about the new rules. He wrote, "The new Drone Rules usher in a landmark moment for this sector in India. The rules are based on the premise of trust and self-certification. Approvals, compliance requirements and entry barriers have been significantly reduced."

Check PM Modi's tweet:

New features of Drone Rules 2021

According to the press release, several new features have been added which include the abolishment of several approvals including unique authorisation number, unique prototype identification number, certificate of manufacturing and airworthiness, certificate of conformance, and many more. Also, the number of forms and the types of fees have been reduced from 25 to 5 and 72 to 4 respectively.

No permission will be required for operating drones in the green zone followed by the reduction in the yellow zone from 45 km to 12 km from the airport parameter, it added. 

The new rules also remove restrictions on foreign ownership in Indian drone companies and also removes the requirement of import clearance from DGCA. Also, nano and model drones are exterminated from the type certification. 

(Image: PTI)