Tech Desk: The Indian Army is set to get a rocket launcher that hits with the reach of a missile. DRDO is developing the Pinaka Mk4, a weapon designed to strike targets up to 300 km away. This multi-barrel rocket launcher is meant to fill the gap between conventional rocket artillery and short-range ballistic missiles.

The biggest change is size. Tender documents, including those from RCI Hyderabad, point to a 370 mm rocket motor, far wider than the 214 mm used in the older Pinaka Mk-1 and Mk-2. A wider body holds much more solid propellant, and that extra fuel delivers the longer range. It also leaves room for inertial navigation (a system that tracks the rocket’s own movement to stay on course) and terminal guidance, which steers it onto the target with high accuracy.

The likely targets sit deep behind enemy lines: command headquarters, logistics hubs and air defence sites. Analysts compare its role to the American ATACMS, a precise long-range strike weapon that avoids the heavy logistics of a full ballistic missile unit. There is a trade-off, though. Bigger rockets mean fewer can fit on each launcher, so existing storage and firing platforms will need changes. The Army is expected to field the Mk4 alongside earlier Pinaka variants, which deliver heavy volleys of fire.

The rocket, also called the Extended Long Range Guided Rocket (ELRGR), is expected to anchor India’s proposed Integrated Rocket Force. Working with the quasi-ballistic Pralay missile, it would let commanders strike at several depths at once. Pre-production units and trials are slated for 2028, with induction targeted for 2030 if evaluations succeed. Once in service, it should reduce India’s dependence on ageing Russian Smerch systems.