The Indian Ministry of Defense recently announced that the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC), led by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, has approved several procurement proposals totaling approximately $9 billion. This funding is directed toward modernizing the technological capabilities of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, with a significant emphasis on precision strikes, surveillance, and autonomous systems.
Army Enhancements
The Indian Army is set to receive several key upgrades aimed at improving tactical precision and defense against modern threats. The DAC cleared the acquisition of loiter munition systems for artillery regiments, designed for precision strikes on tactical targets. To address the rising threat of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the ministry approved low-level lightweight radars and an Integrated Drone Detection and Interdiction System (Mk-II).
Additionally, the range and accuracy of the Pinaka rocket system will be bolstered through the procurement of long-range guided rocket ammunition.
Naval and Aerial Upgrades
For the Indian Navy, the focus is on communication and sustained surveillance. The approval includes high-frequency software-defined radios (HF SDR), and the leasing of High-Altitude Long-Endurance (HALE), remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS). These aircraft are intended to provide continuous intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance over the Indian Ocean region.
The Indian Air Force will see improvements in both safety and combat range. The DAC approved an automatic take-off and landing recording system to provide high-definition, all-weather data for aerospace safety.
On the combat front, the induction of Astra Mk-II missiles will allow fighter jets to engage targets from greater standoff distances. Other approvals include SPICE-1000 long-range guidance kits for precision strikes and a full mission simulator for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, intended to provide cost-effective pilot training.
These approvals represent a systematic effort to fill existing capability gaps across the three services. The Indian defense establishment aims to improve its tactical awareness and strike capabilities in both the hinterland and the maritime domain
