Govt decides to form Drone Regulatory Authority
The Prime Minister was given a detailed briefing on the peaceful and research-based use of drone technology in various fields. PHOTO: RADIO PAKISTAN
The federal government on Tuesday decided to form a Drone Regulatory Authority (DRA) for effective use of the remote-control surveillance technology in various fields.
Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry apprised Prime Minister Imran Khan regarding the formulation of drone policy at a high-level briefing in Islamabad.
The premier was also thoroughly briefed on the peaceful and research-based use of drone technology in various fields.
"The drone technology is very useful for agriculture, urban planning, security and law and order," PM Imran said and gave directives to set-up a committee to devise a legislative and regulatory body in this regard.
According to reports, the committee would submit a draft regarding DRA act to the prime minister within a month.
On September 28, the government prepared a draft policy for use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) – drones, model aircrafts, quadcopters and balloons – and asked all stakeholders to give their input on the proposed draft in two weeks.
“After incorporating the stakeholders’ input, the draft policy will be presented before the federal cabinet for its approval,” said the Minister for Aviation Ghulam Sarwar Khan.
The minister had earlier chaired a high-level meeting to hold a consultation on the policy for the UAVs.
Secretary Aviation Hasan Nasir Jami and officials of Aviation Division, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Industries, the Federal Board of Revenue as well as representatives of the provinces took part in the meeting.
The meeting directed all stakeholders to give their feedback on the policy in two week so that the draft may be approved soon. The secretary aviation briefed the participants on the policy and said it aims at categorizing different types of drones and determining eligibility of their operators.
He said the policy covers the various uses of such aircraft for entertainment, research, sports, photography and media coverage, industrial, agricultural and other purposes.