Drone taxis and deliveries on the horizon as India plans to liberalise rules

Flying drone taxi 3D illustration (Source: ShutterStock)

India could soon have drones being used as taxis to ferry people or to deliver goods.

These are among the proposals in the Draft Drones Rules, 2021, which were released for public consultations on Thursday. Members of the public can send their suggestions till August 5, after which the rules will be finalised, taking the feedback into consideration.

The draft rules propose to abolish several approvals, reduce the number of forms to be filled and fees payable, minimise human interface on a planned digital sky platform where most permissions will be self-generated, and scrap restrictions on drone operations by foreign-owned companies registered in India. The flexibility proposed is expected to facilitate foreign direct investments in the sector.

The AvTech Forum of India, which works on promoting innovation, safety, economic growth and social development in the aviation sector, welcomed the rules, which the government said were built on the premise of trust, self-certification and non-intrusive monitoring.

“Numerous approvals have been abolished. Certification standards seek to promote made-in-India technologies. The draft talks about setting up a Drone Promotion Council to facilitate a business-friendly regulatory regime – these will provide a significant boost to the industry,” a forum spokesperson said.

Fewer forms

The draft rules seek to reduce the number of forms that need to be filled to six from 25 earlier and have made the fees minimal, with no linkage to the size of a drone, as was the case previously.

According to Ankit Kumar, managing partner at Alternative Global India, the proposals simplify drone operations by abolishing approvals such as unique authorisation number, unique prototype identification number, certificate of conformance, certificate of maintenance, import clearance, acceptance of existing drones, operator permit, authorisation of R&D organisation, student remote pilot licence, remote pilot instructor authorisation and drone port authorisation.

Alternative Global India focuses on helping businesses and governments in the area of drones and electric vehicles.

Also Read: India tests longer-range drone flights, eyes COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to rural areas

Terming the draft proposals a forward-looking step, Kumar said implementation of the proposals will help promote not only the drone industry but also many associated uses of drones, including surveys and inspections, healthcare and emergency logistics and other deliveries.

“The policy also makes it easier for future air mobility solutions by addressing some of the basic requirements for it,” he said.

Bold approach

The Drone Federation of India said it was encouraging to see that the regulations were framed by following a balanced approach with an understanding of the economic benefits that drone technology brings while also addressing the country’s safety and security concerns.

“The Ministry of Civil Aviation’s decision to liberalise the drone policy even after the recent drone incidents in Jammu showcases the government’s bold approach to promote the use of  drones and focus on the development of counter-drone technology to address the threat posed by rogue drones,” the federation said in a statement.

Among the proposed steps is the development of the digital sky platform, an online system hosted by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation for various activities related to the management of drone activities. An interactive airspace map will be displayed on the digital sky platform, with green, yellow and red zones that represent the level of airspace restrictions on drone operations.

“This digital sky platform will act as a business-friendly, single-window online system,” said Brijesh Pandey, founder & CEO of GarudaUAV. “There will be minimal human interface and most permissions will be self-generated. No security clearance is required before any registration or license issuance.”

GarudaUAV is a platform-based drone survey and inspection company in India.

Also Read: Aviation ministry issues draft rules to ensure ease of using drones in India

According to Kumar, with no restrictions on drone operations by foreign-owned companies registered in the country, India can look forward to FDI and an influx of cutting edge technologies through technology transfers and joint ventures since the local market will be large.

Drone taxis

The new rules propose increasing the coverage of drones to 500 kg from the current 300 kg, which opens up the possibility of drones being used as taxis to ferry people.

“In simple language, these are larger drones capable of carrying 2~4 passengers for intra-city commutes, flying autonomously and are centrally controlled. The ability of these drones to take off and land vertically on top of high-rise buildings or from a small drone port, and travel horizontally like a helicopter makes it a very interesting option for a quick commute,” said Kumar. “These solutions could also be used for the regional connectivity scheme that the government is working on using drones for inter-city travel in a hub-and-spoke model, connecting smaller towns to the regional airports.”

The draft rules propose to reduce penalties for non-compliance or contravention of the rules, which will be punishable, as before, under provisions of sub-section (2) of Section 10 of the Aircraft Act, 1934.

Kumar said drone deliveries are a reality and the proposed rules are aimed at removing some of the regulatory hurdles that have delayed drone trials for the past one and a half years.

Currently, some trials have already started and others like “Medicines from the Sky,” an initiative of the Telangana government and the World Economic Forum, are slated to start soon, pending some approvals.

Poised to take off

Pointing to other positive developments, Pandey said the yellow zone is proposed to be reduced from 45 km to 12 km from the airport perimeter. A yellow zone marks the airspace of defined dimensions above land or territorial waters within which drone operations are restricted and require permission from the air traffic control authority concerned.

“No flight permission is required up to 400 feet (vertical height above ground level) in green zones and up to 200 feet in areas between 8 and 12 km from the airport perimeter,” he said.

While the most important use case for drone delivery in India is in healthcare logistics and emergency logistics to access remote and hard-to-reach areas, drone deliveries can also be used, in future, for e-commerce, defence, offshore, food and multiple other sectors, Kumar said.

Pandey was of the view that implementation of the proposed changes will see the Indian drone services industry, which is poised to take off, follow a high flight path to scalability, sustainability and profitability.

Also Read: Eyes in the sky: Exploring India’s evolving drone ecosystem

“The Drone Promotion Council to be set up will surely facilitate a business-friendly regulatory regime, which is the need of the hour. In a nutshell, this policy will help the industry be free from restrictive shackles,” Pandey pointed out.

The Drone Rules, 2021, will replace the Unmanned Aircraft System Rules, 2021, (released on March 12, 2021), which will stand repealed.