Lok Sabha Question No. 3567 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-08-08
Subject: Courses on Drone Operation as a Skill
Ministry: SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Asked by: L.S. Tejasvi Surya

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3567 TO BE ANSWERED ON 08.08.2022

## COURSES ON DRONE OPERATION AS A SKILL

## 3567:  SHRI L.S. TEJASVI SURYA:

## Will  the  Minister  of  SKILL  DEVELOPMENT  AND  ENTREPRENEURSHIP  be pleased to state:

(a) whether  the  Government  is  prescribing  courses  to  build  more  drone  pilots,  drone operations and drone as a skill in the country and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether the Government is framing or granting affiliation or recognising short-term and long-term courses on the operation of drones for commercial and defence usage keeping in view the new Drone Policy of the Government, and if so, the details thereof;

- (c) the number of existing courses offering skills on drone shakti, number of skill centres running  the  said  courses,  number  of  registrations  per  course  and  number  of  persons graduating from the courses, State-wise; and
- (d) whether the Government is providing any financial assistance or any other assistance in  the  way of promoting drone courses for those enrolling and for those teaching the same and if so, the details thereof and the amount of assistance provided?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (SHRI RAJEEV CHANDRASEKHAR)

(a) & (b). Yes, Sir. Drone sector is a shining example of significant growth of innovation and start-ups  in just the last few years. Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has developed  Six  (6)  short-term  skilling  courses  for  manufacturing,  assembly,  repairing  and maintenance of drone as well as to meet the requirement of skilled manpower in drone sector. The details of courses are attached at Annexure-1.

In addition, According to Ministry of Civil Aviation, approval for establishing a Remote Pilot Training Organisation (RPTO) is granted as per Rule 39 of The Drone Rules, 2021. Any person  who  intends  to  obtain  the  authorisation  to  establish  a  RPTO  shall  submit  an application to Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on the online Digital Sky Platform. The Director  General  may,  within  sixty  days  of  the  date  of  receipt  of  application  issue  the authorisation to establish a RPTO if the applicant meets the specified requirements. DGCA has specified a five-day course for grant of Remote Pilot Certificate by a DGCA-authorised RPTO. The course comprises ground classes and practical training. As on 2nd August 2022, there are 27 DGCA authorised RPTOs. So far, 576 remote pilot certificates have been issued.

(c) The Government has started short-term course namely 'Drone Service Technician' in 126 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) across 19 states in the country for the session 202223. The details are attached at Annexure-2.

(d) Training in  Government ITIs and under PMKVY courses etc. is free,  while there are other paid courses also.

Annexure  referred  to  in  reply  to  part  (a)  &  (b)  of  Lok  Sabha  Unstarred  Question No. 3567 to be answered on 08.08.2022:

Short-term skilling programmes on drone manufacturing, repairing and maintenance

|   Sl. No. | Short-term Courses                          | NSQF Level   | Duration   |
|-----------|---------------------------------------------|--------------|------------|
|         1 | Drone Service Technician                    | Level-4      | 400 Hours  |
|         2 | Drone Manufacturing and Assembly Technician | Level-4      | 390 Hours  |
|         3 | Drone Operator (Multi- Rotor)               | Level-4      | 390 Hours  |
|         4 | Kisan Drone Operator                        | Level-4      | 390 Hours  |
|         5 | Drone Developer (Software)                  | Level-4      | 510 Hours  |
|         6 | Drone Monitoring and Maintenance Associate  | Level-3      | 390 Hours  |

Annexure referred to in reply to part (c) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 3567 to be answered on 08.08.2022: Number  of  Industrial  Training  Institutes  (ITIs)  approved  to  run  short  -term  skilling programmes on drone manufacturing, repairing and maintenance in country

| Sl. No.   | State Name        |   No. of Approved ITIs for Short-term Drone Courses |
|-----------|-------------------|-----------------------------------------------------|
| 1.        | Andhra Pradesh    |                                                  11 |
| 2.        | Arunachal Pradesh |                                                   5 |
| 3.        | Assam             |                                                  14 |
| 4.        | Bihar             |                                                  10 |
| 5.        | Chandigarh        |                                                   1 |
| 6.        | Gujarat           |                                                  20 |
| 7.        | Haryana           |                                                  10 |
| 8.        | Jharkhand         |                                                  10 |
| 9.        | Karnataka         |                                                   0 |
| 10.       | Madhya Pradesh    |                                                   0 |
| 11.       | Maharashtra       |                                                  12 |
| 12.       | Manipur           |                                                   1 |
| 13.       | Meghalaya         |                                                   2 |
| 14.       | Mizoram           |                                                   3 |
| 15.       | Odisha            |                                                   0 |
| 16.       | Punjab            |                                                   6 |
| 17.       | Telangana         |                                                   0 |
| 18.       | Uttar Pradesh     |                                                  15 |
| 19.       | Uttarakhand       |                                                   6 |
| Total     | Total             |                                                 126 |

*****