Applicable to precision agriculture, locust control and improvement in crop yield
The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have granted conditional exemption to the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Hyderabad, Telangana for the deployment of drones for agricultural research activities.
Amber Dubey, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation said, “Drones are poised to play a big role in agriculture sector in India especially in areas like precision agriculture, locust control and improvement in crop yield. The government is encouraging young entrepreneurs and researchers to look at ruggedized low-cost drone solutions for the over 6.6 lakh villages in India.”
The conditional exemption is valid for 6 months from the date of issue of the letter or until the full operationalization of Digital Sky Platform (Phase-1), whichever is earlier. This exemption shall be valid only if all conditions and limitations are strictly adhered to. In case of violation of any condition, this exemption shall become null and void.
