The DRDO revolution: Technology first, weapons later - Broadsword by Ajai Shukla - Strategy. Economics. Defence.

Home Top Ad

Breaking

Thursday 29 May 2008

The DRDO revolution: Technology first, weapons later



(Part II of a series on the DRDO's new approach to technology)




(Photos: The Akash launcher, at Defexpo 2008, with the DRDO's Chief Controller of R&D, Dr Prahlada. He was one of the scientists interviewed for this series of articles)


by Ajai Shukla
Business Standard, 30th May 08



It was a typical DRDO press conference, at the Aero India 2007 show in Bangalore in February 07. Brushing off questions about the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) that had already been 24 years in the making, DRDO chief, Mr M Natarajan, announced a clearly unachievable 15-year target for building even more high-tech Medium Combat Aircraft (MCA), advanced trainer jets, and a fleet of Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs) that will fly without pilots to fight aerial battles by remote control. Most experts agreed this was science fiction… without the science.

But now the DRDO is bringing back the science. Steering away from ambitious targets, the DRDO has decided to announce new programmes only after completing the development of all the technologies that underpin them. After bruising criticism from the military, the media and parliamentary bodies, the DRDO is fundamentally changing the way it does business.

In the series of exclusive interviews granted to Business Standard by the DRDO’s top scientists, there is a clear realisation of the damage caused by failing to meet the huge expectations generated by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam (DRDO chief through most of the 1990s) for programmes like the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP), the LCA programme and the Arjun tank.

The blame for this failure, say DRDO scientists, lay with being caught short of technology by the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), which placed tight sanctions on India from 1988-89 onwards. The Akash system, to name just one, was delayed for years, because they unexpectedly found themselves having to engineer crucial radar components, which they had hoped would be available from the international market. 

“Today, there is a shift from purely building systems, to equally focusing on creating the technologies of the future”, explains Dr VK Saraswat, the DRDO’s Chief Controller of Missiles and Strategic Systems, who oversees key programmes like the Agni ballistic missile and the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) system. “When there is a limited focus on a particular programme, generic technology development takes a back seat. But no organisation can sustain future growth unless you have built technologies for the future systems which are going to emerge.”

To boost technology development, the DRDO has organised its laboratories in “clusters”, each cluster developing a particular kind of equipment, e.g. missiles, aeronautics, or life sciences. Within each cluster, some laboratories develop weapons programmes, while at least one laboratory focuses exclusively on developing technology for the others in that cluster. In the missile complex in Hyderabad, for instance, the Defence R&D Laboratory (DRDL) and the Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL) develop India’s entire range of missiles. Meanwhile, a third laboratory, Research Centre, Imarat (RCI) concentrates exclusively on developing crucial missile technologies, e.g. ring laser gyroscopes for the navigation systems of a ballistic missile that must accurately hit targets 3500 kilometers away.

The missiles that will run on these technologies will only be announced after the technologies are perfected. Dr Saraswat admits he is working on a 5000-kilometer range Agni-5 missile, with multiple warheads (MIRVs) that can manoeuvre and send out decoys to confuse enemy anti-missile defences. But the DRDO, he says, will only announce that programme, and ask the government for funding, when all the technologies are in place. 

The DRDO is accumulating technology not just from its laboratories, but from a range of establishments across the country: IITs, universities, and government and private science & technology establishments. Nobody will admit it on record, but even India’s space programme indirectly validates key DRDO technologies. The recent launch of 10 satellites from the PSLV-C9 rocket is not dissimilar to launching decoy warheads from a military ballistic missile. 

For now, the optimistic announcements of Aero India 2007 have been shelved, while DRDO laboratories work on the technologies that will power those complex systems. Dr Dipankar Banerjee, the Chief Controller (Aeronautics and Materials Sciences) says the MCA has not even reached the “concept studies” stage yet. And the technologies that will go into the UCAV are still being worked upon.

Dr Banerjee explains, “We need to mature the technologies (for the UCAV) first. Only then can we go to the Indian Air Force with a proposal. We don’t want the entire project to become hostage to one technology that gets held up.”

The DRDO has clearly decided that developing technologies is at least as important as developing weapons systems. Dr VK Aatre, the DRDO chief from 2000-04 had said, “weapons programmes and technologies have to maintain equal pace.” Only now is the DRDO heeding his advice.

14 comments:

  1. DRDO has always eluded timelines - since they are more of a research body than someone committed to deadlines.

    Good to see them planning before they act. Wish more high end research gets offloaded to universities and privates.

    ReplyDelete
  2. "The DRDO is accumulating technology not just from its laboratories, but from a range of establishments across the country: IITs, universities, and government and private science & technology establishments."

    The above thought process is the best thing that can propel DRDO to new heights and establish it as a professional R & D body with a cutting edge.

    PPP is the long term solutions to the development of the country as a modern weapons technology hub.

    ReplyDelete
  3. trust a prize numbskull like shukla to do a self-important series, and then begin by falling for drdo's patent crap. just look at how he's lapping up their nonsense. technology first weapons later. gee, thanks for nothing, f*kers, you've already blown a big enough bloody hole in our exchequer account thanks very much...

    ReplyDelete
  4. Mr. Shukla, your statement that Tejas project is 25 years old in incorrect. The ADA itself was formed in 1985, after funds were allocated in '83. By 1988, only the project definition (a formal paper) was ready.

    In 1990, preliminary production was to begin, but due to IAF's delay in giving final clearance, the ADA could start full production only in late 1993.

    Hence, the Tejas project is 18 years old.

    Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  5. trust a prize numbskull like shukla to do a self-important series, and then begin by falling for drdo's patent crap. just look at how he's lapping up their nonsense. technology first weapons later. gee, thanks for nothing, f*kers, you've already blown a big enough bloody hole in our exchequer account thanks very much...

    hey aroor, post under ur own name, thanks very much

    ReplyDelete
  6. ^^

    no that's not shiv aroor, its none other than ANKUR. I recognise from the language used

    ReplyDelete
  7. isn't ankur that silly guy who got conned by a smart chap who disguised as ajai?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Lol - could not stop laughing at the above two posts!

    It just seems rather rich, coming from somebody who posted as "anon" and then "ajai" and then "ajai (fake)".

    Seriously - how *old* are you guys? Grow up, and learn to do things with some self respect - in the open, and with your name attached.

    Thanks.
    Ankur

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anon,

    Yes exactly, it is ANKUR who's that silly guy. Nobody can be mistaken. it's none other than him. 100% confirmed.

    Unfortunately he removed his comments and even begged ajai to remove that entire topic because he was so embarrased; and didn't want anyone to read it. Ajai threw some mercy his way and had it removed.

    In fact his grandmother told me that he almost commited suicide for making an utter fool of himself!!

    But judging from the above post, he seems more silly than I thought!! Perhaps he's growing sillier by the day!

    Thanks,
    silly-ankur

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'm sorry anon, that wasn't me who posted

    ''trust a prize numbskull like shukla to do a self-important series, and then begin by falling for drdo's patent crap. just look at how he's lapping up their nonsense. technology first weapons later. gee, thanks for nothing, f*kers, you've already blown a big enough bloody hole in our exchequer account thanks very much...''

    It is another guy called Ankur. You can see him in every topic making baseless comments. However sometimes he gets out of his mind and posts as an anonymous; impersonating innocent people like me.

    Sorry again.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi
    I know very little about defense and defens reporting .I really felt(after reading) as if our indian scientists are begging for technologies.I beleive EADS was step by several countries to get rid of their american inventories.Even they had delays in getting their plane.For country like ours with limited budget, technology and heavy bureaucracy , our people have done good(not the best).Please don't portray them like them like a group of beggar goin door to door (for technologies).
    Even though we have to improve a lot things ,please take up contructive critisicm. I felt DRDO is definitely not joke to play around for viewerships.
    Prabhu.G

    ReplyDelete
  12. hey Prabhu, instead of commenting on this article y not u comment on Ankur.. the silliest guy in the world (after the average porkistani).

    ReplyDelete
  13. sorry ankur, i couldn't help myself n juz wanted some fun. chill dude.

    ReplyDelete
  14. why india is behind in defence technology while other country like china is progress so fast.this makes satatement that our political status is not strong as compare to china this is because of corruption in our poltical party and polticaian.our defence is not update as compared to china,u.s,u.k,israel,russia.........we r only strong in comparrision with pakistan,nepal ,srilanka,bangladesh,mayanmar......
    if however critical comes infront of india (u.s.a,u.k,china....)ten what we will do
    i think,for this first of all we haveto strength our economy and this is possible only when we make laws in which all poltician have to give his property data clearly and then investigate it.if this implimented in regularlar way then definitely our country will make strong in eci

    ReplyDelete

Recent Posts

<
Page 1 of 10412345...104Next >>Last