April 23, 2021: The ministry of civil aviation (MoCA) and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have granted conditional exemption to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for conducting a feasibility study of the Covid-19 vaccine delivery using drones in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur.

The permission exemption is valid for a period of one year or until further orders, stated the ministry in a release.

Furthermore, conditional drone use exemption has been granted to a few entities and civic bodies to carry out studies using drones. These are the municipal corporations of Dehradun, Haldwani, Haridwar and Rudrapur for preparation of GIS-based property database and electronic tax register; the Kota and Katni divisions of West Central Railway for train accident sites and maintaining safety of railway assets.

“These exemptions shall be valid only if all conditions and limitations as stated for the respective entities are strictly adhered to. In case of violation of any condition, the exemption shall become null and void and action may be initiated by MoCA & DGCA,” the ministry said.