[Answered] Examine the critical gaps in India’s civil aviation safety framework amidst rapid market expansion. Evaluate the measures required to harmonize fleet growth with regulatory oversight and institutional capacity, in light of recent Parliamentary warnings regarding the imperative of safety-first governance.

Introduction

As India becomes the world’s third-largest aviation market, the 2025 Parliamentary Standing Committee warned that fleet expansion, private aviation growth and regional connectivity are outpacing regulatory capacity, creating systemic civil aviation safety vulnerabilities.

Growth–Safety Paradox in India’s Aviation Boom

1. Rapid Market Expansion vs Oversight Capacity: India’s civil aviation sector has witnessed exponential growth, with domestic passenger traffic crossing 150 million annually (DGCA, 2024). However, the Sanjay Jha-led Parliamentary Committee cautioned that regulatory institutions have not scaled proportionately, narrowing the margin for error in a high-risk sector.
2. Private and Charter Aviation as the Weakest Link: While scheduled airlines follow standardized operating procedures aligned with ICAO norms, non-scheduled operators (NSOPs) exhibit uneven compliance. Lean safety teams, weak maintenance documentation and limited operational control centres expose gaps in Continuing Airworthiness Management.

Regulatory Stress and Institutional Deficits

1. DGCA’s Manpower and Capability Constraints: The committee flagged that the DGCA operates with chronic staff shortages, echoing CAG findings (2022) on inspector vacancies. This forces a reactive regulatory culture, undermining risk-based surveillance and predictive safety oversight.
2. Need for Regulatory Autonomy: Unlike the US FAA or EASA, DGCA lacks full financial and administrative autonomy, affecting talent retention and technical expertise. Parliamentary recommendations advocate statutory independence to strengthen enforcement credibility.

ATC Capacity, Fatigue and Human Factors

1. Air Traffic Control as a Safety Bottleneck: Air Traffic Controllers are handling dense traffic volumes without commensurate recruitment or rostering reforms. ICAO identifies fatigue as a key contributor to human error, a concern reiterated by the panel for India’s metro airports.
2. Infrastructure and Technology Lag: Despite fleet growth, Tier-II and Tier-III airports under UDAN lack advanced Instrument Landing Systems (ILS), weather radars and emergency response capabilities — increasing operational risk during poor visibility or adverse weather.

Operational Gaps in Non-Scheduled Flights

1. Flight Planning and Weather Risk Assessment: The committee highlighted dilution of pre-flight risk evaluation in private operations. Unlike airlines with centralized Operational Control Centres (OCCs), charter flights rely heavily on cockpit judgment, increasing exposure to decision-making under pressure.
2. Mandatory Safety Management Systems (SMS): The panel stressed that SMS must be uniformly operationalized across all operators. ICAO’s State Safety Programme (SSP) framework mandates proactive hazard identification rather than post-incident compliance.

Why Safety-First Governance is Imperative

1. Economic and Reputational Stakes: A major aviation accident triggers insurance premium spikes, fleet grounding and investor uncertainty. The Boeing 737 MAX crisis globally illustrates how safety failures can disrupt entire ecosystems.
2. Learning from Past Crashes: Probe reports — from Mangalore (2010) to Kozhikode (2020) — repeatedly highlight human factors and training lapses. The committee recommended centralized tracking of safety advisories to prevent “report fatigue”.

Measures to Harmonize Growth with Safety

1. Strengthening Institutional Capacity: Accelerated recruitment, specialized training and data-driven oversight tools are essential for predictive regulation.
2. Just Culture and Whistleblower Protection: Adopting a Just Culture framework encourages voluntary reporting of errors, distinguishing human mistakes from negligence.
3. MRO Localization and Sovereign Safety Control: With nearly 85% MRO dependence abroad, domestic capability expansion is vital for timely airworthiness assurance.

Conclusion

As President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam observed, safety is foundational to progress. Parliamentary warnings reiterate that India’s aviation ambitions must rest on institutions, not speed — making safety-first governance non-negotiable.