Goa district bans drones citing 'security risk'

Panaji: The North Goa district administration on Wednesday banned the use of drones by private individuals and entities for 60 days, terming the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) a "security threat".

The order, issued by North Goa additional district collector Swapnil Naik, prohibits all NGOs or individuals to launch drones in Indian civil airspace within the jurisdiction of the district.

"Such UAVs or drones have the potential for a large number of civil applications and of late, this has been a cause of concern as such UAVs or drones pose a security threat," Naik said in the order.

"Besides, airspace over cities in India has a high density of manned aircraft traffic and due to lack of procedures and standards and uncertainty of the technology, such UAVs or drones pose a threat for air collision and accidents as well," the order added.