By Nikhil Cariappa The Ministry of Civil Aviation has announced the launch of Digital Sky, the online platform for the registration of drones in India. Suresh Prabhu, the Minister for Civil Aviation, tweeted on Saturday that online registration for drone operations is now live on the Digital Sky portal. After registration, drone operators can commence personal and commercial drone flights. Happy to announce that we are launching the Online Registration Portal for #Drone Flying Permission, #DigitalSky from TODAY. The platform is now LIVE at https://t.co/35nWXNCVJ5#NewIndia #TransformingIndia — Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) December 1, 2018 The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had put out the first draft of regulations in April 2016 after being apprised of the safety hazards posed by drones and the absence of a drone policy in India. After consultations and revisions, the Ministry of Civil Aviation had announced the draft of drone regulations 1.0 in August 2018. India’s drone policy has come into effect from December 1, 2018. The Digital Sky portal lists the rules for legal drone operations in India – All drones (other than nano drones) are required to have a unique identification number (UIN). The fee for a fresh UIN is Rs 1000. All drone operators (except for nano and micro drones) are required to obtain an Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit (UAOP). The fee for a fresh UAOP is Rs 25,000 and is valid for 5 years. No permission, no take off (NPNT) – Before any flight, a NPNT clearance needs to be obtained All drones…
