The Civil Aviation Ministry’s new draft on the Civil Drones Bill released on Tuesday, has introduced imprisonment terms ranging between three months to three years for violation of numerous rules about drones, reported S Lalitha of The New Indian Express.
It also gives the power of confiscation of the devices by authorised individuals. The new bill aims to promote and regulate the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in the country.
Termed the Civil Drone (Promotion and Regulation Bill) 2025, it exempts the UAS of the naval, military, air force or any of the armed forces of the Centre or the UAS weighing above 500 kilograms.
The liberalised Drone Rules notified by the government on August 26, 2021, to boost the drone industry will now get stricter. They were introduced to replace the draconian rules notified in March 2021.
A significant introduction is the imprisonment for a period of one year or fine upto Rs one lakh or both for violation of many sections of the bill including the following – owning or operating an unmanned aircraft unless it is registered with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and has been allotted a Unique Identification Number; no manufacture or sale or transfer of the UAS without a ‘Type Certificate’ from the DGCA; non-possession of valid remote pilot certificate from DGCA or other empowered staff; and an organisation not authorised by the government cannot impart training, among others.
The draft adds that whenever the Director General of DGCA or any person authorised by him or the officer in-charge of a police station receives any complaint that the provisions listed above have been violated, the electronic devices or records or documents can be confiscated under this Act and they can be detained, added TNIE.
Asked for his response to the new draft, Smit Shah, president of the Drone Federation India told this reporter, “We are still studying it. A preliminary glance reveals that the liberalised rules of August 2021 have now been made more stringent.”
He added, “The drone industry is presently a Rs 3,000 crore industry and is booming presently. It is expected to touch 11.06 billion dollars by 2030."
Violation of certain provisions of the Bhratiya Nagrik Suraksha Samhita 2023 and Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita 2023 will be a cognizable offence and punishable with a three-year imprisonment or a fine of Rs 1 lakh or both, it adds.
All stakeholders in the drone industry and the public have been given time till September 30 to respond to the draft. Responses can be sent to the Ministry by email: us.sdit-moca.gov.in and sdit.div@moca.gov.in with the subject specified as 'Draft Civil Drone Promotion and Regulation Bill, 2025'.
