Indian Industry Group Presses for UAS Operating Rules
by Neelam Mathews April 16, 2016 Recognizing the need for a regulatory framework for operating civilian unmanned aerial systems ( UAS s), the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry ( FICCI ) has provided India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation initial guidelines that it hopes will form the basis of legislation. The final policy is expected to be released by year-end, Rajiv Nayan Choubey, India's secretary for the Ministry of Civil Aviation, confirmed to AIN recently. Currently, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation permits only government agencies to fly UAS s in India. The Indian Space Research Organization has made a start to open operations to others by filing a request for proposal ( RFP ) for exploratory studies using UAS s for remote sensing. An unidentified U.S. company is believed to have received a separate RFP from the Gas Authority of India for using UAS s to inspect a ...