Current legislation on drones in India

The previous law concerning a complete ban on drones was repealed last year. Since 01.12.2018, the general ban has been softened and strict conditions imposed. Drone pilots have to adhere to very complex rules while foreign tourists are still not allowed to fly drones in India because of the danger of terrorism. The import of drones is only permitted with the prior permission of the Ministry of Telecommunications (Department WPC, Wireless Planning and Coordination). Anyone importing a drone without the authorization of the authorities must expect confiscation and the drone will be detained without replacement.

In India, drones are considered as civilian, remote-controlled aircraft that require a unique identification number from the Air Traffic Regulatory Authority (DCGA). UAVs are divided into three weight classes with different requirements. For example, nano drones under 250g do not require a permit to fly inside buildings. However, most commercially available drones such as the DJI Mavic Pro fall under the category of micro drones up to a maximum of 2 kilograms for which the strict regulations apply. For each flight, the operator or pilot also requires a license to fly an unmanned aircraft (Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit, UAOP). The flight operation of a drone is only permitted in daylight and within sight, flying into a military restricted area or security area is prohibited and the local police must be informed before taking off.
The Ministry of Communications, Department WPC (Wireless Planning and Coordination) is also responsible for the commercial import of drones and supervises the WPC registration. In addition to remote controlled devices such as drones, WPC certification is mandatory for all wireless devices with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc. We, the MPR International GmbH, will be pleased to support you with the WPC registration and accompany you during the entire certification process.
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