New Delhi [India], November 16 (ANI): As India works to bolster its defenses against hostile drones, the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force are set to procure 16 indigenous drone detection and interdiction systems capable of disabling unmanned aerial systems at a range of 2 km using laser technology.
The Defence Ministry is expected to approve the Defence Research and Development Organisation’s Integrated Drone Detection and Interdiction System (Mark 2), which features a 10-kilowatt laser beam—doubling the targeting distance of the earlier version that could engage drones at around 1 km, defence officials told ANI.
The DRDO is advancing long-range, laser-based drone detection and interception technologies in response to Pakistan’s extensive use of drones during Operation Sindoor, which Indian security forces successfully countered.
In addition, the DRDO has test-fired a direct energy weapon system capable of neutralizing targets at 5 km. This upgraded capability will be enabled by a 30-kilowatt laser-based direct energy weapon currently undergoing trials with the armed forces.
In April, India for the first time demonstrated its ability to shoot down fixed-wing aircraft, missiles, and swarm drones using a 30-kilowatt laser-based system, joining a select group of countries—including the United States, China, and Russia—that possess such advanced defensive capabilities.
The demonstration, conducted by the Centre for High Energy Systems & Sciences (CHESS), a DRDO laboratory, took place in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh. The vehicle-mounted Laser-Directed Weapon DEW MK-II(A) successfully neutralized fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles and swarm drones by causing structural damage and disabling their surveillance sensors.
Given the increasing reliance on drones in recent conflicts across the region and beyond, India is expected to require the Integrated Drone Detection System (IDDS) in large numbers.
DRDO chief Dr. Samir V. Kamat noted that the organization is also developing other advanced high-energy technologies, including high-energy microwaves, electromagnetic pulses, and additional systems designed to provide enhanced “Star Wars–level” defensive capabilities. (ANI)
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