NEW DELHI, Aug. 25 -- India is considering a move to test its over 12,000 commercial pilots for psychoactive substances randomly every year, potentially marking a 10-fold increase in the minimum testing coverage prescribed by the aviation regulator.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is examining the implications of shifting from the existing norm of testing at least 10% of the flight crew annually to a system of testing every pilot randomly at least once a year, civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu said on Tuesday.

Consultations with airlines are underway. If testing is expanded to all pilots, then India would be the first country in the world to have such a norm.

"There are multiple ways of approaching this dope test...