RTI flags 40% staff crunch in aviation regulator DGCA amid safety concerns
India Today
An RTI response accessed by India Today has revealed nearly 40% vacancies in key safety wings of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, raising concerns over regulatory oversight.
An RTI response accessed by India Today has flagged a nearly 40 per cent staff crunch in India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), raising concerns about its capacity to enforce safety norms amid a series of recent incidents.
The RTI was filed in the aftermath of the January 28 incident involving Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s aircraft. It sought comprehensive details on the DGCA’s oversight of non-scheduled operator permit (NSOP) holders between January 2023 and December 2025, including safety audits conducted, major violations detected and action taken.
The application also asked for the number of instances where aircraft or helicopter components were used beyond prescribed expiry limits, along with details of operators penalised, suspended or grounded.
In addition, it sought the DGCA’s findings in the September 2023 Learjet 45 crash involving VSR Ventures, including observations on pilot training standards and unstabilised approaches, and whether the operator had been subjected to any special surveillance before a subsequent crash.
In its reply, the DGCA said that the concerned Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) deals only with cadre management of Group ‘A’ Technical Officers and that the information sought did not form part of the records held by that office. It added that the application had been forwarded to other concerned CPIOs.
While substantive operational details were not provided, the RTI response disclosed staffing data in the DGCA’s core safety wings — and the numbers point to significant shortages.
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