The Government of India is planning to bring out a policy for operation of drones by private parties or persons in view of the security threat posed by those Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).
Of late, many persons are engaging drones operated by some private persons for covering marriage parties, religious events, processions and meetings often without obtaining permission from the government departments.
However, operation of drones by individuals for private parties was posing a threat and the persons who are operating and engaged should obtain permission for using drones, said City Police Commissioner D. Gautam Sawang, adding that the modalities in this regard were being worked out.
Central guidelines
“A few days ago, the Centre released guidelines for using drones for private functions and events. There should be some control on drones and we will come out with a policy on operating drones by private persons,” Mr. Sawang said.
A senior police officer said that drones, also known as UAVs, were being used to capture aerial views. But the UAVs could take pictures of VVIPs’ residences, government offices, temples, police stations and offices, bus and railway stations, airports and other secured zones, which posed a threat.
“There were instances of terrorists attacking with drones and doing bombings with the help of UAVs in many places across the world. High capacity drones which can hit the targets from far-off distances are available in the market,” the officer said.
Persons owning drones should maintain the list of customers engaging the vehicle, flying hours, purpose of engaging the drone, area where the vehicle was operated, timings and other particulars.
The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), which issues air operator permits, licences to flight crew and grants permissions for aircraft operations, has reportedly said that operating drones will not come under their purview as drones fly at low altitudes in a limited area.
Later, the Government of India framed guidelines for operating drones and circulated them to all the States. Recently, the Andhra Pradesh Police used 18 drones, of which eight are private drones.“We need drones for regulating traffic, tracking VIP movements, identifying criminals and [for] other purposes. Trained police personnel will be deployed for operating drones in future,” said the Police Commissioner.
