Tech Desk: The Indian Army is making a critical move to protect its armored regiments by equipping existing main battle tanks with advanced integrated anti-drone systems. This proactive step, formally approved by the Ministry of Defence, aims to significantly enhance battlefield survivability against the rapidly evolving threat of unmanned aerial systems (UAS).

Recent global conflicts have dramatically underscored the vulnerability of even heavily armored vehicles to small, inexpensive drones and loitering munitions. These aerial threats can bypass traditional air-defense shields by flying at low altitudes, scouting tank positions, dropping explosive payloads, and precisely guiding artillery strikes. By integrating Counter-UAS (C-UAS) directly onto tanks like the T-90 Bhishma, T-72 Ajeya, and Arjun, the Army ensures self-reliance, allowing crews to instantly detect and neutralize hostile drones in their immediate vicinity without external support.

While specific details remain undisclosed, these vehicle-mounted C-UAS setups will likely perform detection, identification, tracking, and destruction. This involves a combination of miniaturized radars, electro-optical sensors, electronic warfare equipment for jamming radio and GPS signals, and potentially hard-kill measures like physical interceptors for autonomous drones.

Integrating such sophisticated technology into older tanks presents engineering challenges, particularly regarding size, weight, and power demands. However, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh highlighted this procurement as a major opportunity for India’s domestic defense manufacturing sector, leveraging existing technical capabilities to develop and retrofit these vital systems locally, thus bolstering indigenous innovation.