Haryana tops country with 24 Drone Pilot Training Institutes
Haryana has the highest number of approved Remote Pilot Training Organisations (RPTOs) to train drone operators. According to data presented by the Ministry of Civil Aviation in Parliament on Monday, the state has 24 RPTOs, including one government institute and 23 private entities.
Following Haryana are Maharashtra with 18 RPTOs and Karnataka with 15. Across India, a total of 145 RPTOs have been authorised by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to train, test and certify drone pilots.
Responding to a question by Member of Parliament Sanjay Kumar Jha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol said, “The issuance of Remote Pilot Certificates (RPCs) by DGCA-authorised RPTOs has substantially increased. As of now, 21,030 RPCs have been issued.”
Drone pilots are being widely utilised by Central and state government organisations for emergency responses and citizen-centric services. A total of 85 Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) models have been “type certified” by DGCA under various classes such as micro, small and medium for specific uses.
The minister highlighted that the type certification of UAS is currently limited to visual line-of-sight operations. “Beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations of drones is evolving worldwide, and DGCA has established a working group to prepare a regulatory framework,” Mohol said.
The DGCA is closely monitoring global developments in unmanned aviation to develop regulations and integrate AI-powered drones into India’s airspace. To ensure safety, drones must be registered, and geo-fencing has been mandated for type certification. Geo-fencing restricts drone movements within predefined airspace.
An interactive airspace map has also been introduced, categorising low-level airspace into red, yellow and green zones for drone operations. In green zones, no permission is required for drone operation, while yellow zones require approval from the relevant air traffic control (ATC) authority. For operations in red zones, permissions must be secured from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and other relevant authorities.
