Latest news with #MinistryofDefence
News18
an hour ago
- Business
- News18
Hypersonic BrahMos-II To Stealth Fighters: What To Expect From DRDO In Next 10 Years
Dr PK Mishra, Principal Secretary to PM Modi, reviewed advanced defence projects at DRDO's Bengaluru lab, signaling India's intent to become a global weapons supplier In a quiet but significant visit to DRDO's Bengaluru lab, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Principal Secretary Dr PK Mishra reviewed India's most advanced and ambitious defence projects, ranging from hypersonic missiles to laser-based air defence systems. His visit signals the government's clear intent that India won't just arm itself but will aim to become a global weapons supplier. Fresh off Operation Sindoor, a covert mission against terror camps in Pakistan that displayed the growing operational reach, India is now focusing on ramping up indigenous weapons production. At the heart of this shift is a strategic pivot that 'Make-in-India' isn't just about self-reliance; it's about capturing a slice of the global arms export market. Dr Mishra interacted with scientists leading radar and electronic warfare programs. He asked for updates on both active and stalled projects, including those aligned with India's 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' and 'Sell to the World' defence export push. DRDO officials confirmed that he urged faster delivery of next-gen systems. This high-level scrutiny comes as the Ministry of Defence pushes a sweeping indigenisation drive. Over 400 weapon systems and platforms have already been pulled off the import list. From now on, India will build and deploy these itself. The DRDO Playbook: 10-Year Vision 1. Hypersonic Strike: BrahMos-II A major leap from the current BrahMos, the BrahMos-II is designed to hit targets 1,500 km away at Mach 8, eight times the speed of sound. It will be launchable from land, sea, and air platforms. Trials are expected to begin in the coming years. Nicknamed the 'carrier killer," this joint DRDO–Navy project is undergoing trials. With a range exceeding 1,000 km and built-in electronic counter-countermeasures, it's engineered to punch through jamming and sink high-value enemy ships. 3. Stealth Dominance: AMCA India's fifth-generation stealth fighter, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), is expected to fly its first prototype by 2026. The aircraft will feature supercruise capabilities, internal weapons bays, and stealth geometry. Serial production could begin around 2032. 4. Multi-Layer Missile Defence: Project Kusha Often dubbed India's answer to the S-400, this indigenous air defence system will intercept everything from drones to ballistic missiles. It's built to provide overlapping coverage across multiple ranges (150–400 km) and is slated to be operational within a few years. 5. VSHORADS This shoulder-fired missile system, developed for frontline troops, can take out low-flying drones and helicopters within a 6 km range. With 5,000 units requested by the Army, it's one of the most critical short-range air defence programmes in India. 6. Smart Precision: Rudram Series After successfully testing the Rudram-1, India is working on Rudram-2 and Rudram-3, anti-radiation missiles designed to destroy enemy radars and electronic warfare centers. Rudram-2 will have a 250–300 km range, while Rudram-3 could reach beyond 550 km. Both will be air-launched from platforms like the Sukhoi Su-30MKI and AMCA. 7. Directed Energy: CLAWs Laser Defence DRDO is developing laser weapons to neutralise drones, mortar rounds, and micro-missiles. The CLAWs system will use directed energy to vaporize incoming threats mid-air, a vital tool for the future battlefield. Projects In Limbo While many projects are charging ahead, some critical systems are still bogged down: GTX-35 Kaveri Engine: Talks with France's Safran for joint development continue. The indigenous engine is crucial for making the AMCA fully home-grown. Uttam AESA Radar: Designed for fighter aircraft, production is capped at just 24 units a year. DRDO, HAL, and BEL are working on scaling it with a conveyor-line model. Light Tank Zorawar: Co-developed with L&T, the tank is ready, but cost overruns, mostly due to engine import dependencies, have delayed induction. Warhawk AI Combat Drone: DRDO's killer UAV program aims for initial operational clearance (IOC) by 2027, but development of its sensor fusion software has fallen behind schedule. view comments First Published: July 15, 2025, 14:39 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Spectator
19 hours ago
- Business
- Spectator
The Ministry of Defence has dropped the ball on fighter jets
If Defence Secretary John Healey didn't have an anxious and unsettled weekend, he should have done. The Ministry of Defence once again has serious questions to answer over equipment, this time the F-35 strike aircraft programme, the cutting edge of the Royal Air Force's offensive capabilities. It is a political commonplace that our executive faces inadequate parliamentary scrutiny, but there is one institution which can still cause ministerial pulses to quicken in panic: the National Audit Office (NAO). Established just over 40 years ago, the NAO carries out financial audits and value-for-money surveys on government departments. Essentially, it is the independent watchdog of public expenditure, and its head, the comptroller and auditor general, is an officer of the House of Commons, not a civil servant. On Friday last week, the NAO published a report on 'the UK's F-35 capability', examining the procurement, operation and maintenance of the jointly operated RAF/Royal Navy fleet of Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning multi-role strike fighters. Its conclusions, by any reasonable reading, were delivered with asperity; at worst, they were damning. The UK first became a partner in the United States-based design of the F-35m in 1995, and the programme has been beset by a range of problems over the intervening decades. Successive governments have exacerbated the situation: in 2010, the Ministry of Defence decided to switch from the F-35B variant to the F-35C, then reversed the decision two years later. Typically of the MoD, financial decisions have repeatedly been deferred in vain and usually counter-productive attempts to save money. The headlines from the NAO's report are plain. Of the 138 F-35s the UK has ordered, 37 are in service, but there is no schedule for the remaining aircraft. The programme has already cost £11 billion, and the MoD estimates the whole-life cost, keeping the aircraft flying until 2069, will cost £57 billion; until recently it insisted it would be £19 billion. The NAO estimates it will be £71 billion. The programme is at least two years behind schedule, and the ability of the aircraft to fire long-range 'stand-off' missiles will not be achieved until the 2030s. In 2024, the F-35 fleet was only available to carry out all seven missions required of it by the MoD a third of the time; one time in two, it was available to perform at least one of those seven missions. Shortages of engineers and spare parts have meant that pilots have not been able to log enough flying time for training and development. Bluntly, the MoD is paying vastly more than it expected over a longer time period for aircraft that are not currently able to perform all the functions for which they are required. Some of these problems are being addressed, but on others there is silence. This is not just the fault of the current government, of course. The dysfunctional roots of the programme go back decades. But John Healey happens to be holding the baby at the moment. The appropriate response from the MoD would have been acknowledgement of responsibility, a degree of contrition and a clear, straightforward plan explaining what would be done to address or at least mitigate the myriad problems the NAO identified. That was not how the MoD reacted: The National Audit Office's report rightly recognises the world-class capabilities of the F-35 fighter jet, as well as its significant economic benefits – including £22 billion of work for UK companies, creating thousands of jobs. The programme continues to operate within its approved budget, and the UK will have two full squadrons of F-35 fighter jets ready for deployment by the end of this year. It is true the NAO noted the advanced capabilities of the F-35, but the MoD addresses none of the failings, claims that it 'continues' to operate within budget (which the NAO contests) and points to the economic benefits, as if the F-35 was a job creation scheme. I don't expect the programme's senior responsible officer to commit seppuku on the steps of the MoD. But this blind refusal, which senior civil servants and military officers have displayed repeatedly, to accept that anything is amiss is insulting and deeply worrying. If they won't admit what has gone wrong, do they know? If they don't know, how will they stop it happening again? Healey's Defence Reform programme has created a new National Armaments Directorate to manage procurement, though the director is yet to be appointed. But it is hard to see what he or she will be able to do unless there is a dramatic change of culture at the MoD. Only ministers can achieve that change. I hope John Healey did a lot of thinking over the weekend.
Business Standard
20 hours ago
- Business
- Business Standard
BEML gains as board to mull stock split proposal on July 21
BEML rallied 3.79% to Rs 4,593.60 after the company announced a board meeting scheduled for Monday, 21st July 2025, to consider a proposal for the sub-division/split of its equity shares. In a regulatory filing, the company stated that the board will discuss the stock split in accordance with Section 61(1)(d) of the Companies Act, 2013. Further details regarding the split ratio and record date are expected to be announced following the boards approval. The official announcement was made on Friday, 11th July 2025, after market hours. BEML is a leading multi-technology 'Schedule A' company under the Ministry of Defence. It operates in three verticals, viz., defense & aerospace, mining & construction and rail & metro. As of 31 March 2025, the Government of India held a 54.03% stake in BEML. The companys consolidated net profit jumped 11.97% to Rs 287.55 crore, while revenue from operations rose 9.17% to Rs 1,652.53 crore in Q4 March 2025 over Q4 March 2024.
Al-Ahram Weekly
a day ago
- Politics
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Syrian army deploys in Sweida to restore order after deadly clashes - Region
The Syrian Ministry of Defence announced Monday that it has begun deploying military units to the southern province of Sweida, following deadly clashes between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes that left at least 37 people killed. In a statement, the Syrian Defence Ministry said it is 'deeply saddened and concerned by the bloody developments witnessed in Sweida over the past two days.' The ministry blamed the escalation on an 'institutional vacuum' that emerged when the clashes broke out, which 'fueled an atmosphere of chaos and hindered the ability of official security or military institutions to intervene,' thus impeding efforts to de-escalate the situation and maintain restraint. 'Our forces, in coordination with the Ministry of Interior, have begun rapid deployment to end the clashes decisively, provide safe corridors for civilians, and uphold the legal duty to protect the population,' the statement read. The deadly clashes have once again highlighted the persistent security challenges facing Syria's transitional authority since it came to power following the ousting of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. The latest fighting, which began Sunday, continued sporadically into Monday in several villages, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor and the Suwayda 24 news outlet. The violence erupted Sunday following a robbery on the Damascus–Sweida highway, which triggered a wave of kidnappings and retaliatory attacks between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes. The clashes led to the closure of the international highway and widespread power outages across parts of the province. Syria's Interior Ministry also issued a statement Monday, announcing the start of a coordinated intervention with the military to end the conflict, restore order, and protect civilians. The Observatory raised its death toll Monday to 50, including 34 Druze -- among them two children -- 10 Bedouins and six members of the security forces. State television confirmed six deaths among the army forces. The highway between Damascus and Sweida remained closed, said the Britain-based monitor, which relies on a network of sources on the ground. The defence ministry put the toll at 30 dead and around 100 wounded. Dozens more have been wounded amid armed clashes and mortar fire in Sweida city and nearby villages. 'Lack of state institutions' Syria's defence and interior ministries announced the deployment of military units to the affected areas, the establishment of safe corridors for civilians, and a commitment to "end the clashes quickly and decisively". "The lack of state, military and security institutions is a major reason for the ongoing tensions in Sweida," Interior Minister Anas Khattab said Sunday on X. "The only solution is to reactivate these institutions to ensure civil peace," he added. The latest unrest follows deadly violence in April and May, when clashes between Druze fighters and security forces in Druze-populated areas near Damascus and Sweida killed more than 100 people. The clashes are the first outbreak of deadly violence in the area since fighting between members of the Druze community and the security forces killed dozens of people in April and May. Sweida province is home to the largest Druze community in Syria, with an estimated population of around 700,000. Although the Syrian government and Druze religious leaders in Sweida had reached an agreement to activate police presence within the province and secure the Damascus–Sweida highway — a vital lifeline for residents — tensions have continued to escalate. According to the local platform Sweida 24, attacks along the highway have persisted despite the agreement, further fueling communal unrest in the province. Bedouin and Druze factions have a longstanding feud in Sweida, and violence occasionally erupts between the two. A surge in violence in March targeting the Alawite community -- with more than 1,700 killed -- and the subsequent attacks on Druze areas have undermined confidence in the new Syrian authorities' ability to protect minorities. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Al-Ahram Weekly
2 days ago
- Politics
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Egypt, Indonesia discuss strengthening military cooperation - Defence
Minister of Defence and Military Production General Abdel Mageed Saqr discussed on Saturday ways to strengthen military cooperation between Egypt and Indonesia with his Indonesian counterpart Prabowo Subianto and his accompanying delegation during their official visit to Egypt. In an official welcoming ceremony, the Indonesian delegation arrived at the headquarters of the Ministry of Defence's General Secretariat, where the military band played the national anthems of both countries. During their meeting, Saqr and Subianto discussed several issues of mutual interest and explored ways to strengthen military cooperation across various domains. General Saqr praised the strong ties between the Egyptian and Indonesian Armed Forces and stressed the importance of coordinating efforts and expanding the horizons of future military collaboration to serve the shared interests of both nations. For his part, the Indonesian defence minister affirmed his country's keenness to bolster military relations and enhance the exchange of expertise between the two armed forces. Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces Lieutenant General Ahmed Khalifa, several senior military officials from both sides, and the Indonesian ambassador and military attaché in Cairo attended the meeting. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
