In the recent development of events, the Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia informed today that transitioning of services into online mode at Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will reduce the time taken to get approvals by 10% when the process gets completed. The DGCA is the regulatory authority that looks over the Indian aviation industry.
Benefits of Going Online
The Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said in the statement that earlier the providing of licenses of the pilots was done by the post and then the next step in the procedure was to go through physical appointments but after the transitioning everything will be done online. He cited another instance that previously Aircraft Maintenance Engineers (AMEs) and Air Traffic Control Officers (ATCOs) would receive a license booklet which will now be replaced by a smart card with a chip on it.
The Civil Aviation Minister further added that the government needs to evolve with the changing times. He said that they are working to make the government more and more consumer-centric. He added that it was about time to decentralize the functioning and even appreciated DGCA for being constructive collaborators on the issue rather than being restrictive regulators.
The introduction of services into electronic mode will not only help in reducing the time taken for getting approvals but will also help stakeholders by making the accessibility to the services more convenient. With DG Kumar leading the charge, the stakeholders are considering this move as one of the best reforms done by the regulatory body. The project started back in 2019 and has now been completed despite the pandemic. The project had brought 70% of DGCA work being implemented in the initial phase which is 99 services and additional 198 services in other phases.
Although there are people who have been complaining about not so smooth transition processes and pilots among other people facing difficulties, the sources have confirmed that it is just a brick on a road and would be removed as further reforms are made.
