DRONES, UNMANNED VEHICLES BANNED IN KASHMIR’S SRINAGAR

Sun 04 July 2021:

A week after the drone attack at an Air Force base in Jammu, the Srinagar administration has imposed restrictions on the use, possession and sale of drones.

According to a July 3 order issued by the office of district magistrate Mohammad Aijaz, those having drone cameras or other similar unmanned aerial vehicles must deposit them with police.

“A ban has been imposed on the possession, sale and use of drones in Srinagar due to security reasons. People who have drones should deposit them with the nearest police station,” the district magistrate told NDTV.

All the drones grounded in Srinagar. The administration bans sale, storage, transport and usage of all kinds of drones. pic.twitter.com/Ns0Wdc4YZD

— Shuja ul haq (@ShujaUH) July 4, 2021

The order states that “the decentralised airspace access has to be regulated in view of recent episodes of misuse of drones posing threat to security infrastructure as reported by media/other reliable sources”.

The order adds that “with a view to secure the aerial space near the vital installations and highly populated areas, it is imperative to discontinue the use of drones in all social and cultural gatherings to eliminate any risk of injury to the life and damage of property”.

Besides concerns of breach of privacy and trespass, it is “extremely dangerous to let unmanned aerial vehicles wander around in the skies” within Srinagar, the order states.

Government departments using drones for survey and surveillance activities in agricultural, environmental conservation and disaster mitigation sectors have been asked to inform the local police station before using them.

The order has cautioned that any violation of the guidelines will attract punitive action and directed police to implement the restrictions.

The Srinagar administration’s order comes at a time when security is on high alert in the Union Territory following the drone attack at the Jammu Air Force base in the early hours last Sunday.

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