Continuing with Atmanirbharta in the defence sector, the Indian Army has issued a tender worth ₹30,000 crore to buy ‘Anant Shastra’ surface to air missile weapon systems to strengthen the air defence along the borders with Pakistan and China. The tender for the Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missile system has been issued to the PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL).
The surface to air missiles will strengthen the Indian Army’s Army Air Defence (AAD) system, which played a crucial role in shooting down Pakistani drone attacks during Operation Sindoor. The Indian Army’s AAD operates the MR-SAM, Akash and other smaller air defence systems. Its operations are integrated with the Indian Air Force to fight against aerial threat.
As per reports, the Defence Acquisition Council had cleared the project for buying the indigenous air defence systems soon after the Operation Sindoor in May. The highly mobile and agile QRSAM system would be deployed along both western and northern borders.
Developed by DRDO, ‘Anant Shastra is a mobile, short-to-medium-range air-defence system designed to protect moving formations like armoured/infantry columns and point/area assets from aircraft, helicopters and high-speed unmanned aerial targets. It is intended for quick reaction against sudden aerial threats.
The weapon uses a truck-mounted launcher (6-tube TEL), indigenous missile with a radio-frequency seeker, mid-course guidance with two-way datalink and an active radar/ARH terminal seeker. The operational range of the missile is around 30 km.
The system completed multiple flight tests and evaluation trials from 2019 to 2022 before moving into production.
