Centre grants permission for drone use to NISER, Bhubaneswar

The exemption allows the aerial survey and photogrammetry of centrally protected monuments in collaboration with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) using drones. The approved locations for drone operations for the NISER include Raja-Rani Temple, Bhubaneswar and Lingaraj Temple, Bhubaneswar.

New Delhi: The Ministry of Civil Aviation has granted drone use permission to the National Institute of Science Education and Research, Bhubaneswar. "Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have granted conditional exemption from Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Rules, 2021 to the National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Bhubaneswar," informed an official release by the Ministry.

The exemption allows the aerial survey and photogrammetry of centrally protected monuments in collaboration with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) using drones. The approved locations for drone operations for the NISER include Raja-Rani Temple, Bhubaneswar and Lingaraj Temple, Bhubaneswar. This exemption is valid for a period of one year from the date of approval or until further orders, whichever is earlier and shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the standard operating procedures issued by DGCA.

Earlier this month, drone use permission was also granted to the Directorate of Urban Local Bodies (DULB), Haryana for data acquisition, mapping, and implementation of a web-based GIS platform for the development of AMRUT cities and property tax survey for Hisar, Panchkula, Ambala urban areas.

On July 16, at least four drones were spotted hovering over military installations in the Jammu, Samba, and Kathua districts of Jammu and Kashmir. The June 27 attack on the Jammu air force station was the first such instance of suspected Pakistan-based terrorists deploying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to strike vital installations in India. The National Investigation Agency is investigating the case. After the Jammu attack, the number of drone sightings has gone up drastically and there have been several instances where the Army and Border Security Forces (BSF) troops at the border have fired at them.

(ANI)