Kerala Police and Telangana Police have deployed drones across several districts to keep an eye on COVID-19 lockdown violations. On April 7, Kerala Police tweeted a compilation video of drone footage recorded in the state where people can be seen running through paddy fields, on beaches, upon sighting the drone. In Kerala's Kasargod district, the police have hired drones from individuals, and the footage recorded by those is stored on police's mobile phones, Ashok Yadav, IGP, North Zone, Kerala Police, told MediaNama. Kerala's Cyberdome Police has been spearheading the usage of drones in the state, he told us. The Delhi Police, Mumbai Police and Jammu and Kashmir Police have also used drones to enforce the 3-week long curfew. https://twitter.com/TheKeralaPolice/status/1247441159892267010 District in Kerala outsources drone operations to private individuals There are 7 coronavirus containment zones in Kasargod, and a drone has been deployed in each zone, Yadav told us. These drones are hired from private citizens, who use these machines for photography etc., Yadav said. These individuals often work a 12-hour long shift. Recorded footage is stored on police's mobile phones: The footage recorded by these drones is “stored in the mobile phones of police officials” and the operators don’t have access to it, as they are asked to delete footage recorded by the drones after transferring it to police personnel's mobile phones, Yadav said. Drone footage has led to violators being arrested: Apart from breaking up gatherings of lockdown violators, Kasargod Police have used drone footage to arrest around 160–170 violators in…
