Drones are critical for future warfare: Rajnath Singh

New Delhi: India needs to be fully self-reliant in drone manufacturing and must work in mission mode to achieve this by 2030, defence minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday, emphasising that creation of an indigenous drone ecosystem is essential for the nation to maintain defence preparedness and preserve strategic autonomy.

Speaking at the National Defence Industries Conclave, organised by the Department of Defence Production, he said that it has become evident from ongoing conflicts such as Russia-Ukraine and Iran-Israel that drones and counter-drone technologies will play a major role in future warfare.

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Singh said India needs to build a complete drone manufacturing ecosystem where self-reliance is not just in terms of the final drone platform but also its components such as moulds, software, engines and batteries, which should be made in India. He conceded that the path will not be easy as most countries manufacturing drones rely on China for critical components.

"For India's defence preparedness and strategic autonomy, it is essential to achieve full self-reliance in drone manufacturing. We must work together in mission mode so that by 2030, India becomes a global hub for indigenous drone manufacturing," Singh said.

India plans to utilise drone and automated systems for warfare in the near future and articulated its plans to raise a new drone force in a recently released Vision 2047 document. The armed forces have already inducted a significant amount of drones - for missions ranging from surveillance to precision attacks - and the number is expected to go up significantly in the coming years.

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A major project has also been approved to procure indigenous medium altitude long endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicles which would involve developing a customised large drone for the armed forces.