INDIA’S BIGGEST DRONE FESTIVAL

Recently, India’s biggest Drone Festival – Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022 was inaugurated in New Delhi by the Prime Minister.
A virtual award of drone pilot certificates, panel discussions, product launches, display of a ‘Made in India’ Drone Taxi prototype, flying demonstrations, among others were the key events.
Drone is a layman terminology for Unmanned Aircraft (UA).
Originally developed for the military and aerospace industries, drones have found their way into the mainstream because of the enhanced levels of safety and efficiency they bring.
A drone’s autonomy level can range from remotely piloted (a human controls its movements) to advanced autonomy, which means that it relies on a system of sensors and LIDAR detectors to calculate its movement.

Applications of Drone Technology

In the agriculture sector, micronutrients can be spread with the help of drones.
It can also be used for performing surveys for identifying the challenges faced by the farmers.
Drone system can be used as a symmetric weapon against terrorist attacks.
Drones can be integrated into the national airspace system.
Deployment of drones for combat, communication in remote areas, counter-drone solutions can be done.
Drones can be used for real-time surveillance of assets and transmission lines, theft prevention, visual inspection/maintenance, construction planning and management, etc
They can be used for anti-poaching actions, monitoring of forests and wildlife, pollution assessment, and evidence gathering.
Drones are also significant for the law enforcement agencies, the fire and emergency services wherever human intervention is not safe and the healthcare services.

significance of Drone Mahotsav

Promotion of drone technology is another medium of advancing our commitment to good governance and ease of living.
We have got a smart tool in the form of drones that is going to be part and parcel of common people’s lives.
As drone technology has its application in diverse areas such as defence, disaster management, agriculture, healthcare, tourism, film and entertainment, there is a great possibility of a major revolution creating immense opportunities for employment.
Villages are witnessing the arrival of roads, electricity, optical fibre and digital technology. However, agriculture work is still being conducted in old ways, leading to hassles, low productivity and wastage.
Drone technology is going to play a major role in empowering farmers and modernize their lives.
Government is making efforts towards creating a strong drone manufacturing ecosystem in India through schemes like Production-Linked Incentive (PLI).

Drone Rules, 2021

In 2021, the Ministry notified liberalized drone rules with the aim to encourage R&D and to make India a drone hub.
It abolished several permissions and approvals. The number of forms that need to be filled was reduced from 25 to five and the types of fee brought down from 72 to 4.
No permission is required for operating drones in green zones and no remote pilot license is necessary for non-commercial use of micro and nano drones.
Payloads up to 500kg have been allowed so the drones can be used as unmanned flying taxis.
Further, foreign ownership of companies operating drones has also been permitted.

Way Forward

A few months earlier, there were a lot of restrictions on drones. However, most of the restrictions have now been removed in a very short span of time.
Easy access to technology will help in furthering the vision of saturation and in ensuring last-mile delivery.

SOURCE: THE HINDU,THE ECONOMIC TIMES,MINT

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