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‘Akash missile system can’t be trusted during war’: Degraded by govt defence agencies, loopholes in strategic weapon system threaten national security

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Yatish Yadav Dec 02, 2019 18:22:43 IST

Other squadrons reported frequent unserviceability of mobile surface-to-air Akash Missile system and long duration downtime, which means that the missiles are dysfunctional and may not be cocked and loaded against enemy in contingency

Several government agencies, including missile manufacturer Bharat Dynamics Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited, did not tell the truth to the government about malfunctioning Akash Missile system and poor quality of spare parts provided by the private vendors

CAG was perhaps far-sighted, when in a 2017 report, the national auditor observed that Akash Missiles cannot be trusted in situation of a war

On 3 June, 2018, Akash Missile’s Transportation and Loading Vehicle (TLV), parked at an Air Force Squadron, was jolted after a sudden burst of tube followed by shearing off wheel bolts due to impact. The incident shocked Air Force headquarters. The Air Force officials wanted not only wanted the routine analysis of the incident, but also an in-depth discussion with Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), a multi-disciplinary Missile System laboratory under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to unearth issues hampering the functioning of the strategic weapon system.

More than a month later, another squadron reported cracks on air intake caps of dummy missiles. An investigation by Firstpost revealed that the incidents were followed by other squadrons reporting frequent unserviceability of mobile surface-to-air Akash Missile system and long duration downtime, which means that the missiles are dysfunctional and may not be cocked and loaded against enemy in contingency. This incident forced Guided Weapon Maintenance Department of Air Force on 5 September 2018 to raise the issue, where they clearly stated that the “Squadrons have been reporting frequent unserviceability of Missiles and it has been noticed that time taken to resolve these failures is considerably high due to delay in analysis of failures.”

The sheer inertia of government defence enterprise involved in Akash Missile production and maintenance reached to such an alarming level that at least three squadrons of Akash in February 2019 reported that missile system remained down or simply broken and sometimes even out of order during 90 percent of the time since their date of commissioning. These squadrons were commissioned between 2013-2015 to counter Chinese aggression.

Multiple government agencies, including Missile manufacturer Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) which comes under the Ministry of Defence, Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) which is responsible for radars and maintenance and the DRDO, did not tell the truth to the government about malfunctioning Akash Missile system and poor quality of spare parts provided by the private vendors.

The malfunction of Integrated Air Compressor and Storage Facility (IACSF) revealed another shocker and the Air Force mentioned it on record that the IACSFs of Akash Missile System units are unserviceable due to wobbling and vibration, pneumatic leakage, breaking of mounting pads and bolts. A missile had failed to take off during combined guided weapon firing exercise known as ‘CROSSBOW-18’ and a team of Missile System Quality Assurance Agency (MSQAA), BDL and DRDL was constituted to investigate the failure.

MSQAA is an independent inspection Agency under the administrative and functional control of Director General Aeronautical Quality Assurance, which comes under the Department of Defence Production of Defence Ministry. The incidents of leakage from fuel tanks and leakage in pressurised Missile containers were taken so lightly that the Air Force, responsible to secure the nation from aerial threats, was forced to direct to the DRDL, BEL and BDL that present configuration of certain systems of Akash Missile will not be acceptable for future squadrons, which are under the process of procurement. The Air Force, BDL, BEL and DRDL are yet to respond to a questionnaire sent by Firstpost on 24 November.

Details expose criminal act by government defence enterprises

If there is an emergent situation, several Akash sqaudron may not be able to launch counter offensive because deficiencies in many of the system including hydraulic oil leakage and container pressure leakage, which is pending since 2017. The complaints received from Air Force headquarters, Eastern Air Command and other Akash field units reveals there is no back-to-back agreement with vendors for equipment under warranty, making it difficult to repair the faults. Documents reviewed by Firstpost showed that almost all squadrons have expressed that they are unable to get proper feedback from BEL on repairing the faults in Missile System and on problems plaguing Akash Missiles which Indian agencies are ill-equipped to resolve. Surprisingly the field engineers, who are supposed to rectify the critical snags, are not even aware of any action plan.

Documents further said: “Currently majority of the Akash field engineers are working to pass information about issues without any tangible technical output. The untrained and poorly equipped field engineers are neither aware of any corrective action plan nor they are committed.”

The documents also pointed to massive delay in supply of spares for Missile System, virtually grounding them for for six months to a year. Air Force in a meeting had informed that most of the problems reported in 2017 were pending for over a year now. The documents also pointed at the repairing of Akash trailers which are covered under annual maintenance contract. It said: “Akash Trailers serviceability is poor and some cases spares supplied to Akash Missile units are not configured as per system requirement which is affecting equipment serviceability in case of failure.”

Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) the manufacturer of Akash Missile has not been able to resolve three important issues for the last two to three years. BDL, founded in 1970, is a government enterprise under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence. It is learnt that BDL was told in high level meeting convened last year to come out with solid plan after conducting an investigation and study of faults in Akash Missile System within a month on long delays of critical faults. Even the investigation to unearth and address the issues was delayed.’


The Air Force has refused to pay for new maintenance contract for certain Akash Missile squadrons as the old ones expired in September 2019. They argued that missile systems in several squadrons were left idle for more than a year. Instead, it had asked for extension of warranty for certain squadrons which have been dysfunctional for 17 to 15 months in the last two years. Air Force asserted since system was down and faults were neither rectified nor replaced, it violated the maintenance contract. Air Force is learnt to have said that “during the warranty period, the seller shall either replace or rectify the failed goods free of charge within 30 days of notification of such defects. As per article of the contract, warranty of the equipment would be extended by such duration from time the buyer has reported such unserviceabilities till the time seller has restored the status of the buyer’s satisfaction.”

Red tapeism in government defence enterprises hurt national security

Firstpost investigation also revealed gross inefficiency of government defence agencies BEL, BDL and DRDL to address the problem in Akash Missile System. Documents reveal that meetings after meetings were convened on the issues but the government defence enterprises couldn’t satisfactorily answer the questions raised by Air Force. These government defence enterprises have been passing the buck. They also cheated Air Force by providing substandard and fake spares.

A meeting earlier this year chaired by Air Vice Marshal Bhanoji Rao pointed at severe negligence in handling Akash Missile System which may have serious ramifications in contingency. Documents revealed that certain spares, especially those of sub-vendors (procured by BEL) were being received at Akash Missile System units without ‘Quality Assurance’ certification and on a few instances it came to light that these spares were old and fake. In a letter, it was noted: “On few instances it has been noticed that the items were not new/authentic.”

Air Vice Marshal Rao clearly told his team at the Air Force not to accept spares without ‘Quality Assurance’ certification. The meeting also revealed a lack of expertise of government-owned defence enterprises which are acting merely as a supplier of equipment after procuring it from domestic and foreign vendors. It basically means that these government enterprises are acting like a payment facilitators. Their complicity in this entire saga was further exposed when government defence enterprises officials told the senior Air Force officials that sub-vendors (private companies supplying spares) were not willing to share their design documents.

An appalled Air Vice Marshal asked, if the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) is the authority then it must have intellectual property rights of all designs related to Akash Missile System. Obviously, the defence agencies representatives were not aware about it since they never took the pain to look into the agreements and promised the Air Force to look into the matter to ascertain whether these rights were with vendors. A promise was made to list all major vendors for unhindered supply of spares to overcome single vendor situation. As far as BEL is concerned documents said: “Almost all squadrons have expressed that they are unable to get proper feedbacks from BEL on progress and plan of action of pending faults.”

The meeting chaired by Air Vice Marshal Rao also discussed high failure rate of one of the systems of Akash Missile, lacunae in analysis of faults and mismatch in software versions used for the this strategic weapon.

Another major loophole, which highlights the non-seriousness of defence agencies, is the contract with the private vendors. The agreements are more favorable to private parties putting Akash Missile System in jeopardy. Documents flagged these concerns further pointing out that all the vendor supplied items are outside their warranty obligations and in certain cases supplied spares are not configured as per system requirements. Some spares for Akash Missiles are not fit and functional and this is affecting the equipment serviceability in case of failure.

It appears that careless handling of most critical weapons has been going on for a long time. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) was perhaps far-sighted when in a 2017 report, the national auditor observed that Akash Missiles cannot be trusted in situation of a war. CAG had categorically stated that Akash missile system delivered by BEL were deficient in quality and 30% missiles failed the test.

“Audit found that the Strategic missile system delivered by BEL were deficient in quality. Out of 80 missiles received up to November 2014, 20 missiles were test fired during April-November 2014. Six of these missiles i.e., 30 percent, failed the test. Preliminary failure analysis report revealed that the missiles fell short of the target, had lower than the required velocity, and also there was malfunctioning of critical units like Servo Control Unit and Connector. Two missiles had failed to take off because the booster nozzle had failed. These deficiencies posed an operational risk during hostilities. Two missiles had failed to take off because the booster nozzle had failed. These deficiencies posed an operational risk during hostilities.” CAG report had said.

Firstpost investigation showed that after the CAG report, the squabbling between government defence enterprises had come to light. Eight critical snags in Akash Missile Systems were reported after the CAG report which were pending for three-seven months. CAG had recommended that Ministry of Defence needs to ensure better synchronisation of the various activities and agencies involved in such strategically important projects to ensure their timely completion and quality of Strategic Missiles also needs improvement so as to bring down failure rate.

Notwithstanding, many snags were not rectified citing lack of spares. The Air Force anguished over lackadaisical attitude of BEL and BDL has firmly directed them to resolve all internal issues immediately and ensure that no Missile is kept unserviceable due to their internal problems.

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Defence industry may see spectacular growth after 2019 General Elections, says L&T’s Jayant Patil

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May 16, 2018 12:28 PM IST | Source: Moneycontrol.com

The L&T Whole-Time Director expects capital spending, as part of the defence budget, to increase next year, resulting in higher project orders

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Jayant D Patil spearheaded L&T’s foray into the defence industry in 1986, at a time few other private companies saw any promise in the heavily regulated industry. Patil, who joined the infrastructure heavy weight straight after passing out from IIT Mumbai in 1978, developed long-term relationships with the DRDO, and the Navy, among other defence establishments.

The early start is now helping the engineering giant. In 13 years since its debut in the market, L&T has become the largest private defence company in the country, and is bigger than most of the government-owned defence enterprises.

In an exclusive interview with Moneycontrol, Patil – Member of the Board & Whole-Time Director (Defence Business) at L&T – says that defence is one of the fastest growing businesses in the company. To reflect the growing importance of the vertical, the defence business is now an ‘independent company.’ And starting from this financial year, L&T will report the defence segment as a separate entity within its core businesses.

“We have the entire infrastructure in place. We have all the initiatives put in place. We have the R&D centres,” says Patil, adding that L&T is set for a spectacular growth.
For that growth to happen though, the central government will have to increase the proportion of capital spending in the defence budget. Patil is hopeful of that happening after the 2019 General Elections.

Excerpts from an interview:

The government has talked about developing capabilities domesticallyto reduce the dependence on imports. The Make in India campaign also focuses on the defence industry. Have you started seeing the difference?

The focus is there. The government has started putting programs in a competitive basket. Earlier projects would either go to a foreign player, or to a PSU. But now, for instance look at Navy. Earlier, 92 per cent of the warships or submarine contracts by value have been placed with government owned shipyards. As of now, except of old decisions, the government plans to allow private sector to participate in all future shipbuilding programs on competitive basis.

The issue is that things are not changing at the kind of pace what one would have hoped for and the quantum of money being allocated to enable new contracts. The current Budget allocations are just good enough to meet committed liabilities.

Why is that?
One should look at the budget allocation. Till 2014-15, 40 per cent of the defence budget would go into capital spending. Today, that has dropped to 20-25 per cent. And that it because of the huge increase in revenue costs (salary and pension payments).

That is something which the government did out of sheer respect for people who fought for the country. But the fact is that it has come at a huge cost for the future preparedness of Armed Forces. So money has become a constraint and allocations need to be enhanced.

And that has led to the slow pace?
Yes.

Do you think the situation will be better after the General Elections in 2019?
Yes, I believe that the reversal will possibly happen when the new Government comes around after the 2019 General Elections.

What has the present situation meant for L&T’s defence business?
So we have a scenario today where this is a market which shows huge promise. And we keep getting orders as and when a PSU gets a big contract. The public enterprises buy from us because we have developed these products in partnership with Defence Research Organisation (DRDO). So the business continues in “business as usual” state, the growth comes in with us getting few contracts directly from MoD.

But the growth could have been truly spectacular had Make-in-India programs taken off in a big way. We have the entire infrastructure, technologies, products and capabilities already in place. We have all the initiatives proactively in place. We have the R&D centers, design centers, and innovation groups in place. Earlier we used to have one, but now we have four R&D / Basic Design Centers to serve the defence sector.

What is your manufacturing presence?
Today we operate from Powai (Mumbai), Hazira, Baroda, Pune, Coimbatore, Vishakapatnam, Katupalli, New Mumbai and Bengaluru, which is more of an R&D unit, but also has a small production facility for strategic electronics.

Which is your largest segment?
The largest segment today is the artillery and Naval segments. The smallest segment what we are operating today is the space, missiles, communication, which are individually worth about Rs 100-200 crore per year.

What is the total order book now?
I can’t give you that number. But perhaps in another few months I can. From the 2019 financial year, we will be reporting defence business as a separate entity within the L&T core business. So wait for that.

Although we have been operating defence business for three decades, we had created defence as a separate independent company (IC) as an entity, with its own board, in the FY 2018.

A few reports last year said your order book was of about Rs 12-15k crore…Holistic if we look at it, we are bigger than that.

So all the defence businesses will be brought under this IC?
All the defence offerings are under this IC, except for very strategic construction programs.

Could you give an idea of how big your defence business is?
If I look at comparisons, HAL and BEL (Hindustan Aeronautics, which has revenue of about Rs 17,000 crore & Bharat Electronics, which has a revenue of about 10,000 crore, respectively) are larger than us. But we are slightly bigger than the other PSUs. You should remember, we were never allowed to produce until licensing began in 2002 and began getting direct orders from MoD only in 2005. In 2002, we got the first license. It’s just been 16 years now.

L&T forayed into defence even before that, with partnerships with DRDO and other defence establishments. How has the early start worked for you?

Across the segments, we have built capabilities that are unmatched. Be it warships, submarines or weapon systems, today our portfolio and offerings are ahead of competition. No other company has a portfolio range and depth as that of L&T. We don’t produce weapons as yet. But we make weapon launching systems and fire controls across the range. We can offer complete solution for an anti-submarine warfare, air-defence, land attack, or anti-ship warfare role to a warship. So, there is no domain in weapon programmes which L&T doesn’t touch.

And because we have in-house capability, we have forged partnerships where we also bring in unique value. As a result, L&T has 250 MoUs and just 4 joint ventures (equity based) while we have preferred to engage in non-equity JVs / partnerships through joint development and joint production mode. ​

Would you consider hiving off the defence business as a separate entity?

No, it is and will stay as a part of core of Larsen & Toubro.

But would you eventually list the business?
I don’t see that, not at least for the next decade or two. As for now, we are better off being part of the L&T core.

Is the defence biz growing faster than the other parts in the L&T core?

Percentage growth wise, I would say it’s among the better growing ones. But the fact is that the scale today is smaller than many other construction & hydrocarbon businesses. So if I look at the entire portfolio of L&T, defence, smart world, power transmission and water are businesses growing faster than others in percentage terms.
First Published on May 16, 2018 12:22 pm

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‘Can’t fight tomorrow’s war with yesterday’s weapons, incorporate AI’: DG Artillery

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Several scientists from the Armament Cluster of the DRDO, representatives of the industry and students are attending the conference in Armament Technology in Pashan, Pune.

Written by Sushant Kulkarni | Pune | June 9, 2018 – The Indian Express

ARDE Director K M Rajan and Lt Gen P K Srivastava.

“Tomorrow’s wars can’t be fought with yesterday’s technology,” said Lieutenant General P K Srivastava, Director General of the Artillery of the Indian Army, and urged the Armament scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to delve more into Artificial Intelligence for future warfare.

Lt Gen Srivastava, who is also the Colonel Commandant of Regiment of Artillery of the Indian Army, was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the two-day National Conference on Advances in Armament Technology (NCAAT 2018), which has been organised at Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE), a DRDO laboratory located at Pashan in Pune.

Several scientists from the Armament Cluster of the DRDO, representatives of the industry and students are attending the conference.

“There is a need for us come out of the concepts on which we are fixated… the world is changing. We live in one of the worst neighbourhoods. If we have to become a power of reckoning, we will have to possess a weapons systems of the future. We can’t be fighting tomorrow’s war with weapons from yesterday. Right now, we are building weapons of yesterday, with more and more efficiency. To build weapons of tomorrow, we need scientists, who know warfare, and we need soldiers who understand technology.”

He added, “Whatever weapon systems we are developing, we should embed artificial intelligence. If that happens, we could look at missiles that are completely automated. We need weapon systems which are intelligent and less and less manpower intensive. I also expect the Armament Cluster of the DRDO to not just develop weapon systems but also come up with ideas for the next generation of warfare. India’s strengths have been software, computers, artificial intelligence and robotics, and we need to further incorporate these into our weapons systems. Our engineers and scientists are working all over the world. We need to utilise our human resources to change the paradigm of the warfare in the subcontinent.”

Responding to Gen Srivastava’s speech, senior DRDO scientist P K Mehta, who heads the Armament Cluster of the DRDO, said after the inaugural ceremony, “There are already some ongoing projects in Artificial Intelligence and unmanned systems. Some laboratories have started incorporating them in the existing products. But it needs to be pointed out that the user, which is the armed forces, does not have a line directorate for the induction of the Artificial Intelligence and unmanned systems. We should have a long term roadmap in the area, which is not there right now. The country, as a whole, needs to have a roadmap for that. The DRDO can certainly help in forming that.”

K M Rajan, director of ARDE, said, “The process of incorporating AI systems into Armament has started at the basic level. We hope to do it more in the future.”

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DRDO has much to answer for its poor performance

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India has been unable to increase its self-reliance capability despite taking several steps.

By Dinesh Kumar | Chandigarh | 21 January, 2018 – Sunday Gaurdian
On paper the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) comes across as formidable. It is currently engaged in about 70 projects that include making almost every major conventional weapon system and platform that major military powers are already manufacturing. From rifles and machine guns to tanks, fighter aircraft, airborne warning and control system, aircraft carrier and a wide array of missiles—surface-to-air, surface-to-surface and sub surface. In reality, the DRDO has much to answer for its performance.

The DRDO, entrusted with developing weapon systems for India’s defence requirement, is critical for ensuring a high degree of self-reliance. Its huge establishment comprises a partnership with over 40 academic institutions, 15 national science and technology agencies, 50 public sector undertakings including the nine defence public sector units, the 40 ordnance factories and the over 250 private sector industries. By 2008, an estimated 1,500 small and medium enterprises were engaged in supplying about 20% to 25% of defence components to defence firms.

Notwithstanding, however, India’s self-reliance continues to hover at 30% to 35% despite a series of measures taken by the government that has resulted in India continuing to remain overly import dependent for its defence requirements. India has been unable to increase its self-reliance capability from the current 30% to 35% despite a series of measures it has taken in the last two-and-a-half decades in particular. Much of even the existing self-reliance capability is based on licence manufacture and transfer of technology by foreign state-owned or private companies. What is more, the government itself has expressed doubts about the country’s capability to even develop core technologies in reports prepared by the parliamentary standing committee on defence.

The harsh reality is that India’s state-owned defence industry has been unable to even develop a rifle, let alone a tank or an aircraft engine. The DRDO has consistently been shifting the timeline for all projects, ranging from rifles to aircraft. Furthermore, the DRDO has been unable to successfully complete a single major project except for a few missile systems and the nuclear powered submarine, although the latter has several shortcomings in capability. The procurement process continues to be time consuming and the private industry remains mired in bureaucratic processes. Most of the private industry’s involvement currently is low scale and focused on making sub systems. It is yet to graduate to making complete weapon systems or highly sophisticated technologies as is the case with major defence companies in the US and Europe.

India’s mission to increase self-dependency for defence equipment to 70% remains a dream. In 1992, following the breakup of the Soviet Union, which had been India’s main source of weapons supply, catering to 70% of the country’s defence requirements, a defence ministry “Self Reliance Review Committee” conceived “a ten-year plan for Self-Reliance in Defence Systems”, which, starting from 1995, was aimed at increasing India’s self-reliance index to 70% by 2005. The defence ministry has now shifted its deadline to attain about 70% self-reliance by over two decades to 2027. But as of now, this seems unlikely in the next ten years.

Efforts of successive governments have failed despite two unprecedented decisions that were specifically aimed at facilitating the self-reliance process—(a) opening of the military-industrial complex to Indian private sector participation up to hundred per cent, and (b) opening up to foreign direct investment (FDI) permissible up to 26%, which was subsequently increased to 49% in 2014 and 100% in 2016.

The present government’s latest emphasis on “Make in India” is undoubtedly noble, but seemingly idealistic. It remains to be seen whether “Make in India” will translate into “Made in India” or remain “Assemble in India”, without intellectual property rights and design control. Perhaps there is wisdom in the advice of David Gross, a Nobel Laureate in Physics, who during a visit to India in January 2016 advised that in order to “Make in India”, the country should focus on first “Discover in India”, followed immediately by “Invent in India”, before it embarks on “Make in India”. But this seems unlikely, considering India’s inflexible, irrational and outdated bureaucracy and the fact that India overall has been spending a paltry 0.9% of its GDP on research and development, compared to 2.1% by China, 2.7% by the United States and 4.4% by South Korea.

India’s record of producing and exporting weapon systems is extremely modest. For example, India’s defence exports averaged a meagre US$88 million a year between 2006-07 and 2008-09, which marginally rose to $174 million in 2013-14 and $330 million in 2016. At a cursory level, the list of countries that have been importing Indian defence equipment is impressive, as it also includes the United States, United Kingdom and Russia. But a study of the equipment reveals that it is very rudimentary—flight control panels, forging equipment and electronic assemblies to the US, transmitting tubes to the UK and, to Russia, some spares and services for the Russian origin MiG-29 and Sukhoi-30 fighter aircraft. None of these are critical technologies or anywhere close to a complete weapon system or a weapon platform.

In contrast, even while China is a major importer of defence hardware, it is at the same time also self-sufficient in certain key military technologies along with being a major weapons exporter. It was the fifth largest exporter of defence equipment to developing countries between 2000 and 2007, the third largest global supplier between 2010 and 2014 following an arms export increase by 143% and ranked fourth between 2008 and 2015 in arms transfer agreements with developing nations. China’s defence exports to developing countries averaged over $3 billion annually between 2011 and 2014, more specifically $2.5 billion in 2007, $2.2 billion in 2008, $3 billion in 2009, $1.9 billion in 2010, $3.2 billion in 2011, $3.4 billion in 2012, $4.2 billion in 2013 and $3.2 billion in 2014 and $ 6 billion in 2015.

India’s state-owned military industrial complex is characterised by flaws at several levels. Internal criticism against the military-industrial complex range from the way the DRDO is conceptualised and structured, its tendency to over reach, technological limitations and incapability; coordination problems with, and changing specifications by, the users, the myriad responsibilities of the head of the DRDO, the continuing limited involvement of the private sector and the predominant role of generalist bureaucrats with no expertise in defence. Moreover, the bureaucratisation of Indian science has created a scientific-work environment with features comprising caution, rules, reviews, screenings, scrutinies, committees, controls, centralisation, delays, doubts, indecision, inaction, suspicion, friction, and less communication.

Until India increases its self-dependence for its defence requirements, India’s import bill is only expected to rise, making it a foreign-made Indian armed force. But such overdependence has come at a high price for the country and the armed forces, which for the last two-and-a-half decades has been battling depleting force levels and antiquity of weapon systems.

The author is a defence analyst

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‘Nirbhay failed due to use of recycled material’

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Sumit Bhattacharjee – VISAKHAPATNAM, JULY 01, 2017 – THE HINDU 

Sub-sonic cruise missile will be ready by month end, says DRDO chief
The fourth test of Nirbhay, the long rage sub-sonic cruise missile that is designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), failed on December 21 last year because of use of faulty material, said Chairman of the DRDO and Secretary of Department of Defence R&D S. Chirstopher here on Saturday.

Speaking to The Hindu after inaugurating a workshop on indigenous lithium-ion batteries for special applications, hosted by the Naval Science and Technological Laboratories (NSTL), the DRDO chief said, “The fourth test of the missile took place from the Launch Complex-III of Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Balasore in Odisha and after lift-off the missile developed snags over one of its wings, started to bank on one side and veered dangerously. We had to activate the ‘self-destruct’ mechanism to kill it mid-air. On investigation, it was found out that the vendor who manufactured it used recycled material for one of the key components that operates the wings of the missile and that was the reason why it failed. The strength of the recycled material was not sufficient to operate the parameters. Though the vendor followed all specifications, the use of re-cycle material was not disclosed.”

But, according to Dr. Christopher, the same vendor had been told to produce another one ‘free of cost’ under the same specifications but without any short-cuts. “Everything was right in the missile, only this faulty material caused the failure. But now it will be ready by July end or August and we shall go for the fifth test,” he said.

Nirbhay is an all-weather, low-cost, long-range sub-sonic cruise missile capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads and is considered to be a strategic weapon.

Roadmap

Pronouncing the roadmap, Dr. Christopher said once the test was successful they would identify the production partner whom they referred to as strategic partner and would go for further variations. “It is a guided missile and right now there is no problem with the path in the higher altitude. But there are some glitches in the lower altitude and we will be working on the seekers for pin-point accuracy. The missile should be ready by next two to three years,” he said.

According to him, the DRDO is working on the strategic partner model who would have stake in the production. “This will make the agency responsible and we will get rid of the tendering process for every small thing. There may be multiple indigenous strategic partners for each of our weapon and defence systems,” he pointed out.

On the naval variant of Tejas–Mark II (light combat aircraft), Dr. Christopher said the prototype was ready and had fullfilled the parameters of ski-jump on board aircraft carriers. But the Navy had been insisting on twin engines and they were working on the power of the engines. “We are also looking for strategic partners and the partner may be a foreign firm that would provide back-end support,” he said.

The DRDO chief sounded very enthusiastic about the indigenously built AEWACS (Airbone early warning and control system). “We have already inducted one indigenously built system and it is flying from Bhatinda.”

In total, they intended to induct 15 AEWACS and of them five would be from Israel and the remaining indigenous ones.

Of the indigenous ones, two would be smaller ones mounted on Brazilian Embraer-145 jets and the remaining would be on Airbus 330. “We have already received the order for six from the Indian Air Force and the negotiations with Airbus is in the final stages. The indigenous ones will have all the features of the Israeli make so that there may not be two teams operating on two different makes,” said Dr. Christopher.

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Shut Down Laboratories And Overhaul The DRDO, Expert Committee Tells Defence Ministry

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All non-core research activity of the DRDO must stop.
Sudhi Ranjan Sen Deputy Editor (News)  The Huffington Post 14/03/2017 3:40 PM IST

HINDUSTAN TIMES VIA GETTY IMAGES The Arjun tank stationed on the Parliament House premises for an exhibition in August 2016 in New Delhi, India.

India’s premier defence research organisation, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), needs a major overhaul, some its research laboratories closed and the organisation needs to concentrate only on development of defence platforms, a high-level committee appointed by the Ministry of Defence has said in its report.

In the last five years, DRDO has been getting between ₹6,000-₹8,000 crore annually for defence research — roughly 6% of the defence budget.

The DRDO was set up in 1958 to achieve self-reliance in manufacturing weapon systems to equip the armed forces. It has over 33,000 personnel, which includes nearly 8,000 scientists, 13,000 technicians, and 52 laboratories. Its area of research is wide and encompasses everything, from juices to nuclear missiles.

Former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had constituted the committee led by Lieutenant General DB Shekatkar (Retired) in May 2016 to suggest ways to enhance the combat capabilities of India. The panel submitted its 550-page report to the government recently.

Top sources told HuffPost India the committee has said as many as 11 laboratories of the DRDO need to closed down or amalgamated and its “non-crore” research activities stopped. The committee also said that DRDO needs to work with “clearly defined” objectives to develop “weapon systems and platforms”.
Instead of the DRDO deciding on areas and focus of research, the committee has recommended setting up of a “Technology Commission”, headed by the defence minister, with representatives from the armed forces. The commission should formulate research and development policy and even set specific deadlines for research.

The committee feels that end-users — the three services — must be consulted on areas of research and development of weapon systems. To break the red-tape in the DRDO, the committee has suggested that DRDO scientists be given incentives for successful completion of projects.

Suggesting further reforms, the DB Shekatkar Committee has also said that Ordnance Factory Boards (OFB) — which produce bulk of the ammunition and weapons used by the forces — should consult the armed forces when inducting new technology or material. It has pointed to the fact that OFB, which produce rifles, wasn’t aware of the exact weight of the guns it was producing.

Interestingly, the committee has said that OFB needs to include private companies and has suggested using private-public partnerships to speed up production, ensure better quality and cut down delays.

This isn’t the first time an overhaul of the DRDO has been recommended. Questions have been frequently raised about the delays and cost over-runs in DRDO projects.

In a 2015 report, the Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) had pointed out that audit examination of 14 mission mode projects, carried out by DRDO laboratories, “revealed that all projects failed to achieve their timelines and the probable date of completion (PDC) was extended many a times”.

These mission mode projects include the crucial S-band surveillance system ‘Rohini’ radars, secure video and fax communication between airborne platforms and ground station ‘Meghdoot’ and electronic warfare suit for the modified MIG-29 fighters.

The delays, the CAG pointed out, “were mainly due to inadequate monitoring”.

 

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Extension for Nirbhay, panel to identify flaws

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By Hemant Kumar Rout | Express News Service | Published: 07th January 2017
BHUBANESWAR: India’s own cruise missile project Nirbhay has got an extension of 18 months amid speculations over the weapon system’s operational capabilities. Launched in 2004, the projected date of completion for the prestigious project was December 31 last.

At a recent review meeting, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar gave green signal for the extension. Ministry of Defence sources said the Nirbhay team has been asked to deliver their best by June, 2018.

Under developmental trial since 2013, the missile is yet to perform as per the expectations. Of four tests in as many years, the indigenously developed weapon had failed three times though it could cover the intended range once in 2014.

Meanwhile, an independent technical committee has been formed to identify faults in the system that led to failure of the missile during its fourth trial on December 21.

The probe committee led by founder director of ISRO Inertial Systems Unit Dr Nagarajan Vedachalam will not only ascertain the faults but also recommend possible measures to make the system robust.

Like in its maiden trial and third test, the missile had veered off the trajectory minutes after take off during the last launch and the mission had to be aborted mid-air.

An official associated with the project, however, informed that the blame game between two laboratories of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) cost the project more than the faults in the system.

While Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), which has designed the missile, has been blaming Research Centre Imarat (RCI) for supplying defective hardware, the latter points fingers at ADE-developed software for recurring failure of the missile.

‘’The probe committee will ascertain which is defective, the software or hardware. It may also inspect metallurgical deficiencies,’’ the sources said.

Having a strike range of around 1,000 km, Nirbhay is first homegrown subsonic cruise missile project. According to DRDO, the missile can challenge weapons of its class.

Nirbhay blasts off like a rocket and unlike a missile, it turns into a vehicle akin an aircraft. Flying at tree-top level, it can deceive enemy radars making it difficult to be detected. Unlike other ballistic missiles, this cruise missile has wings and distinct tail fins. After reaching near the target area, it can hover around, hitting at its will from any direction.

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Agni 5, India’s Longest Range Ballistic Missile, Successfully Test-Fired – NDTV

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NEW DELHI: India today successfully test-launched Agni-5, its longest range ballistic missile, for the third time off the Odisha coast. The missile was launched from a canister from Wheeler Island, giving it higher road mobility.

The three stage, solid propellant “missile was test-fired from a mobile launcher from the launch complex-4 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at about 8.06 hours,” ITR Director M V K V Prasad said.

“The missile, witnessed a flawless ‘auto launch’ and detailed results will be known after all data retrieved from different radars and network systems,” he added.

With a range of 5000 km, the nuclear-capable missile can carry a warhead in the east as far as all of China and in the west all over Europe.

The three-stage missile is about 17 metres long and weighs 50 tons. The first rocket engine takes it to a height of about 40 kilometres. The second stage pushes it to about 150 kilometres. The third stage takes it to about 300 kilometres above the Earth. And the missile finally reaches a height of about 800 kilometres.
The missile travels faster than a bullet and can carry 1000 kilogram of nuclear weapon. It can be launched only on direct orders from the Prime Minister; India hopes it turns out to be a weapon of peace not war.

Unlike other missiles of Agni series, the latest one ‘AGNI-5’, is most advanced having some new technologies incorporated with it in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine, Mr Prasad said.

India carried out two successful tests of the basic version of Agni-5 in 2012 and 2013.

The development of Agni-5 began in 2009 and according to DRDO it will likely be inducted in 2015.

Agni-5 gives India the ability to launch nuclear weapons from land at will from anywhere in India. It will give India the ability to hit back or have second-strike capability even after a nuclear strike.

It was also a super charged farewell gift for DRDO chief Avinash Chander who retires today. India’s Integrated Missile Programme has been a resounding success with the Agni missiles giving the country a credible nuclear deterrence. As a scientist and team leader, Dr Avinash Chander has achieved significant success in his work.

 

 

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Boots, Bullets, Rifles: All In Short Supply For Army

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Parliament's standing committee on Defence has revealed in a report that shortage of ammunition means "it would not be possible for the country to sustain a war for a longer period."
Parliament’s standing committee on Defence has revealed in a report that shortage of ammunition means “it would not be possible for the country to sustain a war for a longer period.”

Reported by Sudhi Ranjan Sen, Written by Suparna Singh | Updated: December 23, 2014 15:54 IST – NDTV

NEW DELHI: The army is running low on ammunition, soldiers posted to freezing places like Siachen and Leh don’t have boots or mosquito nets, and India has failed for over a decade to produce an assault rifle that meets the most basic requirements of the army.

These are some of the troubling highlights revealed by Parliament’s standing committee on Defence, headed by the BJP’s Major General BC Khanduri. The panel has 33 members from both houses of Parliament.

Based on information supplied by the Ministry of Defence, the committee has assessed the preparedness of the army in the winter session of Parliament which ends today.
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The committee, in a report submitted to Parliament, has found that soldiers in high-altitude areas are short of nearly 2 lakh pairs of ankle leather boots; more than 13 lakh canvas boots are needed in the same areas, one lakh mosquito nets are wanted, and soldiers are waiting for 65,000 Balaclavas or masks to keep their faces warm.

The committee says the Defence Ministry has failed to furnish plausible information about how many soldiers have bullet-proof jackets; the members believe that “an important life saving device has not been purchased by the Ministry jeopardizing the lives of thousands of soldiers.”

The committee has voiced its concern over the fact that while the Defence Ministry seems satisfied that equipment like night vision goggles are plentiful, the army has “an altogether different view.” The report offers this indictment – “it appears that the Ministry is not taking the Army into confidence while doing its perspective planning.”

The report warns clearly that the shortage of ammunition means “it would not be possible for the country to sustain a war for a longer period.”

The committee states that the Defence Research and Development Organization or DRDO, tasked with developing technology for the military, has failed since 1982 to produce an acceptable INSAS rifle, the standard weapon of the army .

“The Committee finds it shocking that even years of expertise has not evolved DRDO to develop world class basic product like a rifle,” its report says.

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DRDO under Parliament scanner; dna accesses House committee documents rapping organisation for shoddy research

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Monday, 22 December 2014 – 7:10am IST | Place: New Delhi | Agency: dna
294833-tejasNew Delhi: India’s premier defence research organisation – Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) – is under Parliament scanner.

Shoddy research, inordinate delays, corruption and its fancy for reverse engineering have resulted in the Parliamentary standing committee on defence raising the red flag on DRDO budget for 2014-15.

According to documents accessed by dna, the committee has nailed DRDO on several occasions. It has asked DRDO to furnish details on how many new models, weapon systems and engines have been imported in the last 10 years in the name of study and modifications. “DRDO labs are more interested in importing systems, modifying them a little bit, re-labelling them and reselling them to forces,” the panel observed.

Of the 31-member committee, four members have defence background. “Where do you think DRDO stands in our military hardware preparedness vis-à-vis China today?” the committee said. It also asked DRDO to disclose those areas of technology where they are not competitive or behind the curve.

“There is a perception that DRDO is not really fulfilling its role; it is only doing normal non-commercial office work. DRDO should work out what is required by the services… futuristic and does not get outdated before it is introduced into services. People are expecting something extraordinary from DRDO, something out-of-the-box,” it said.dna began its investigations in August this year when Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticised DRDO during an address in Kargil. drdo delay story dna

“If a project was conceived in 1992, it should not be the case in 2014 we are still saying it will take some more time,” he had said. India, he said, has the potential to be a world leader in defence sector, but was being held back by a chalta hai attitude.

In the last 10 years, the DRDO budget has increased from Rs 3,443.18 crore to Rs 10,868.89 crore (around three times). However, it has completed/closed only 13 projects costing Rs 134.08 crore in 2013 14, while it got 52 new projects, costing Rs 1,651.59 crore from January 1, 2013 to March 31, 2014.

“DRDO’s mandate is to develop products and technologies to modernise our armed forces. It has shown a list of products developed by them. Please also furnish a list of technologies developed,” the committee said.

DRDO’s annual report says that, as on March 31, 2014, it was handling 339 projects costing approximately Rs 45,554.73 crore. Out of these, 37 projects cost above Rs 100 crore, and, in total, account for Rs 38,613.89 crore. This is approximately 85% of active project costs.

DRDO scientists are among the best paid in India. They get incentives like two additional increments on promotion, up to six variable increments on promotions granted on fast track, professional update allowance, opportunity to acquire higher qualifications at reputed institutes and residential complexes.

The committee also asked DRDO about its research on a Gujarat-based Sadhu, Prahlad Jani, who has been living on air. He does not eat and drink. A research on him was carried out in 2003 and 2010 and the committee asked if the outcome can be used in warfare.

Talking to dna, a committee member said on condition of anonymity: “DRDO is doing shoddy research and some parliamentarians seem to be encouraging it by asking how outcomes could be used in warfare. Are you going to deprive Indian soldiers food and water in harsh conditions like extreme heat and cold? It’s disgusting.”

“This is not the only example. Recently, in Pune, they developed a hi-tech chariot to be donated to a temple. Is it what they are supposed to do?” he said.

“There are also a number of irregularities like an institute director buying a Honda CRV for personal use from the institute’s budget, although that car was not fit for that terrain.

“A building construction project worth crores was given to National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) without proper tendering. There are also complaints of misbehaviour and harassment of officials and purchase of expensive tickets from Nagpur, home district of one DRDO institute director,” he said.

DRDO blames it on defence services, finance officers

DRDO has its own woes. They range from lack of testing facilities to infrastructure to shortage of funds to impractical demands of defence services. Another big reason is the rejection of DRDO technologies by defence services, terming them “inferior”, and their ‘preference’ for imported technologies.

A top DRDO official in Delhi said, “Top defence people visit international exhibitions and defence machinery manufacturers where they see the latest technologies. They collect brochures and after coming back, they shortlist good technologies from various options available, amalgamate them and ask DRDO to develop a product or technology. They don’t even bother to study the feasibility of their demands in context with the resources with us. That is one major reason for delay in aircraft and engines.”

“What they see in these exhibitions is imported technology where countries like the US, Russia and France have in-house raw materials building and manufacturing facilities. In India, we have to import even small components. This is one reason for the delay and increase in project costs,” he said.