NEW DELHI: You will soon have drones delivering goods at your doorsteps as the government on Wednesday announced that it would allow commercial use of drones in the country. Announcing the proposed drone policy, civil aviation secretary R N Choubey said, “These rules allow companies to deliver goods at doorstep, provided they follow the norms prescribed under the rules. In fact, (aviation) ministers have wanted it to be open for all to use, including businesses.”
The proposed drone policy, prepared by the Ministry of Civil Aviation after long-drawn consultations with the Ministry of Home Affairs, has classified drones into five groups based on weight — nano (up to 250 gram), micro (251 gram to 2 kg), mini (heavier than 2 kg but not more than 25 kg), small (heavier than 25 kg but not more than 150 kg) and large (heavier than 150 kg).
Nano drones will be exempt from seeking one-time approval and will not require unique identification numbers to operate. But the rest four categories will require unique identification numbers and will also need security clearance every time they operate. The operator should also have a special permit. For the Nano drones, a flight to a maximum height of 50 feet will be permissible.