India, Aug. 17 -- India's aviation safety regulator is demanding greater autonomy from government recruitment processes, citing internal projections that show only 294 new appointments are possible in the next six months due to bureaucratic delays, at a time when the sector faces mounting safety concerns.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has told the government that even after these additions, it will operate with only 847 officials against 1,063 sanctioned posts, using this projection as evidence that traditional recruitment methods are failing to keep pace with the world's fastest-growing aviation market.

Internal documents accessed by HT show the DGCA has proposed sweeping reforms including the ability to hire directl...