The drone industry in Bengaluru is still in a nascent stage and is only now seeing applications for aerial photography and collection of geospatial data. However, the police may soon nip the use of drones in the bud. Let alone grand plans of delivery for e-commerce sites, even aerial cinematography may be curtailed.
State police chief Om Prakash said that they are in the process of issuing an executive order banning deployment of drones near sensitive installations. “We will also be banning movement of drones in any area where there is movement of VVIPs,” he said.
Coming close on the heels of the draft regulation by Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that the industry termed ‘Draconian’, the State government is thinking of introducing stringent regulations on the usage of Unmanned Aircraft (UA), including a blanket ban near sensitive areas.
Officials and the police are waiting for the DGCA guidelines to be notified for a larger regulatory framework.
However, there are fears that such a move will hinder the start-up ecosystem; over 10 start-ups are working in this sector.
Mrinal Pai, co-founder of Skylark Drones, a two-year-old start-up, said that apart from aerial photography, drones had potential in surveys, collection of geospatial data and mapmaking. “We have filed objections to the DGCA draft regulation too. A blanket ban on use of drones will be detrimental to the industry. In fact, the government is one of the biggest customers for this sector. We recently conducted a survey of a canal near Hubballi,” he said.
Apart from the local film industry, which is known to use drones for aerial cinematography, event managers, too, have recently started embracing this ‘new’ technology. The new guidelines and regulations will only leave the sector battered, industry insiders say.
Ashok Venkataraman, leading cinematographer in Kannada cinema, said that drones had almost replaced helicopters for aerial shoots. His most recent work was the 2015 film Kendasampige . “Regulation is welcome. But if overdone, it will kill the creative use of technology. We are prepared to keep the cops informed of our shoots, which is reasonable,” he said.
It is difficult to trace dronesRight now, anybody can buy a drone and can even have one delivered to their doorstop by placing an order online. A drone equipped with a 4K resolution camera costs up to $100 (approximately Rs 7,000).
Drones are a passion for many techies and students. Activities include drone races. But this has led to a huge proliferation of drones in private hands and is a security risk, said a senior police officer.
Tobby Simon, founder of Bengaluru-based Synergia Foundation and a security expert, said that a drone is as good as a weapon, which can be used from carrying out an attack to surveying an installation to even eavesdropping. “The biggest hole in the technology we have today is that these drones cannot be traced to their controllers. The lack of traceability will only make the misuse more menacing. This has to be fixed,” he said.
The draft guidelines of DGCA address the traceability factor. The guidelines prescribe a unique ID for all drones and a permit for its owner to conduct aerial flights. Permit holders will have to apply 90 days in advance to conduct an aerial flight.
