Northern Command 'perfect lab' for testing indigenous products, response positive: Army Commander

The Northern Army Commander Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi tells ET’s Manu Pubby that a range of indigenously developed military equipment is being tested by soldiers posted at the frontlines, with the focus on encouraging Make in India. North Tech Symposium with over 150 companies demonstrating products to take place this week.

On Indian companies and startups developing and testing new systems and platforms:
Northern Command is unique as it faces multiple fronts and frontiers, terrain ranging from plains to Super High Altitude and temperatures varying from normal to as low as minus seventy degrees. All these factors pose operational challenges that have to be dynamically met through high standard of operational capabilities at tactical, operational & strategic levels.


The spectrum of capabilities translates into variety of state of the art weapons, equipment, ammunition and logistic assets. This makes Northern Command a perfect laboratory for fielding, testing and evaluating the defence technologies and products for induction into service. The Northern Command is at the forefront of supporting domestic industry in line with the “Atmanirbhar Bharat”. We have been providing opportunities to the industry to showcase their products and support them during testing and trials.

We are also ensuring that All Ranks from user units and formations are exposed to the products and that they are able to interact with the vendors and share the problems for which we are seeking solutions. This mechanism creates a win-win situation wherein Army is able to address the deficiencies and industry is able to re-orient their Research & Development.

On industry response to armed forces requirements:
The response of the industry especially the domestic one has been positive and encouraging. They have been dynamically integrating & upgrading their technologies and fielding their equipment for trials. North Tech Symposium is perfect example of their response for which, for the first time ever, over 150 vendors have offered to field and demonstrate their equipment meeting host of requirements such as fire power, operational survival, individual & force protection, communications, situational awareness, sights, night vision devices, disruptive technologies, and so on.

Several unique and modern technologies have been volunteered by the domestic firms which will give a prominent boost to the Make in India or Atmanirbharta Initiative. The indigenous 155 mm howitzer and Helina missile are examples. After each stage of trial and evaluation, the recommendations of users have been incorporated by the industry to the best possible extent.

We are also showcasing innovations that have been undertaken by Army personnel or units for meeting our local technological needs. These innovations once exposed to the industry, can be evaluated by them for mass production.

On technologies that need to be given priority:
Given the enormity and nature of operational challenges faced by the Northern Command, the key areas of concern remain Intelligence, Surveillance & Recce for which we require drone and anti drone technology, Robotics & Artificial Intelligence, Virtual/Augmented Reality (VR/AR), fire power, security solutions, disruptive technologies, individual force protection and habitat/medical innovations.

On support from industry assist on 'troops on the ground' led development projects:
We at the Northern Command encourage our officers, JCOs and troops to exploit their creative potential and resolve challenges related to critical equipment and weapon system, their upgradation and effort saving techniques, along with creating new designs to fill existing voids. Thereafter, the effort is made to showcase the same to the institutions such as IITs and related industries for development of prototypes for trials. On successful trials, demands can be placed on industry for supplies. This way new ideas and innovations can get incorporated into the Armed Forces. Some of the equipment developed by military units include TAIROWS (Ten Artificial Intelligence Remotely Operated Weapon System), Counter Drone Technology, Remotely Controlled All Terrain Mine, Short Span Foot Bridge, Robo Mule, Sarvatra Kavach (Bullet Proof Suit) and Padam Kavach (Anti Mine Shoes).

On expectations from the upcoming industry event at Udhampur:
The symposium comprises of two events – a seminar with eminent experts and scientists speaking on varied issues of concern and second is the exhibition of defence products by the industry. While seminar will help identify the current and future needs of the Northern Command, the exhibition will showcase the technologies & products available with the industry. Thus, the symposium will pave the way for trials and subsequent induction into the Northern Command to augment and enhance the battle worthiness besides projecting their futuristic requirements to the domestic defence industry. This would greatly boost the concept of ‘Atmanirbharta’ in defence and would be a great step towards indigenization of some of the items, the import of which has been curtailed by Government of India recently. The event will enable engagement with the DPSUs, private sector, R&D organizations and academia who can be partners in development, fabrication and induction of technologically advanced systems to meet the operational needs of Northern Command.