Telangana government submits drone proposal to DGCA

HYDERABAD: The Telangana government is keen to encourage the use of unmanned aerial vehicles or drones commercially and hopes to be the ‘first-mover’ in this space.
In a preliminary push towards this, the state has submitted a proposal seeking certification from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to be categorized as having ‘BVLOS compliant’ geography. Drones which are beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) would, when allowed, make commercial operations viable.
As per the DGCA regulations for drones, which came into effect on December 1, 2018, drone pilots must maintain a direct visual line of sight at all times while flying. BVLOS missions allow drones to be operated remotely.
Confirming the development, Jayesh Ranjan, principal secretary, Industries & Commerce and Information Technology, said, “We have submitted our proposal to the DGCA. The last date for submissions is July 10. After this, the DGCA will take time to evaluate the proposals and get back to us.”