Topics Covered:
- Important International institutions, agencies and fora, their structure, mandate.
Drone Innovators Network Summit 2019
What to study?
For Prelims: Composition and objectives of DIN.
For Mains: Need for regulations and international cooperation, overview of India’s drones regulations.
Context: Drone Innovators Network Summit-2019 is being held in New Delhi.
Organised by the World Economic Forum under the aegis of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
Drone Innovators Network (DIN):
Started by the World Economic Forum to hasten and contribute to healthy drone policies in need of legislation.
Established to help overcome common challenges regulators are facing in enabling drones and unmanned aviation, such as how to enable beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flights at scale, autonomous operations and flights over densely populated areas.
Composition: Government aviation agencies, academics, and established drone entities.
Inaugural Drone Innovators Network summit was held in Zurich in 2018.
Drone Regulation in India:
India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation issued Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR), effective 1 December, 2018 for drones.
- As per the regulations, manufacturers of drone are required to comply with the requirements of No Permission, No Take-off (NPNT) on the Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS).
- These regulations (CAR Version 1.0) only permit operations of drones during daytime Visual Line of Sight.
- DigiSky is a portal for registration and flying of civil drones in India.
Way ahead:
- As drone technologies evolve and advance at unprecedented speed, regulators from around the world are struggling to keep pace with effective policy that protects populations without stifling the aviation ecosystem.
- As the scale and scope of change increases; government, industry, and civil society leaders must work together to unlock the potential benefits of these technologies to society, while managing and mitigating their risks.
Sources: pib.
