Uttarakhand flood relief: Red flags raised over privacy concerns with Chinese drones

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Post-operations assessment of the Uttarakhand flood relief operations raised “privacy concerns” in regards to future deployment of China-made drones, which were used for mapping and rescue by startups.

Some Indian startups contracted during the relief operations in Chamoli used Chinese brand DJI drones, which are banned for “sensitive use” by the United States, The Economic Times reported.

An official told the paper that “a lot of concerns” about information privacy of Chinese drones were raised by various countries. “So for sensitive operations like in Uttarakhand it would be very risky if usage of Chinese drones continues, especially during border patrol operations,” they added.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) contracted startups Garuda Aerospace, Fliegen System, Drona Maps and Endure Air (Indian Institute of Technology – Kanpur) for the relief effort. Regrettably, 130 people are still missing despite month-long operations.

Another official, however, said that India-made drones had found it difficult to navigate the Tapovan tunnel and “crashed on some occasions.”

The startups have also defended use of the drones as Indian options fell short.

Aditya Wadhaokar, Founder and Director of Fligen, expressed disappointment in the technical shortcomings of Indian drones, telling the paper: “It was disheartening to witness that Indian drones were crashing while Chinese drones managed to fly properly inside the tunnel. There were multiple challenges but we can gain from Chamoli's experience and use drones for mapping to be better prepared for future disaster strategies.”

IIT-Kanpur associate professor Abhishek, who is involved in making indigenous drones told the paper they were called to “play a critical role in search and rescue operations” by the NDRF and Accelerating Growth of New India's Innovations (AGNIi).

AGNIi is a programme under the Prime Minister's Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC).

Wadhaokar added that they worked with Drona Maps to examine the extent of damage due to the disaster through GIS maps and their drones were also located bodies that were washed away by the floods.

Abhishek added that Drona and Fligen captured visuals inside the Tapovan tunnel which was inaccessible by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and NDRF teams which helped ground forces gain “exact idea of extent of debris inside and plan their course of action.