Armed forces equipped with advanced weaponry, drones & UAVs: Jitendra Singh

Minister of State Science and Technology Jitendra Singh on Sunday said that the country is armed with state-of-the-art technology in the defence sector.

He said that unlike in the past, the armed forces now are equipped with advanced weaponry including drones, heliborne operations and UAVs and are ready to adapt to new frontiers like Quantum Computing, Artificial Intelligence and Cyber Security.

Singh was addressing the Indian Military Heritage Festival, organised by the United Service Institution of India (USI) in New Delhi on Sunday.

He said that India is at par with the leading nations in adapting new disruptive technologies that have the potential to transform the defence landscape.

He said that this not only enhances the country’s national security but also positions India as a global technology leader in the defence sector.

“Gone are the times when our forces were using outdated weapons. We are among the seven elite countries in the world that are using Quantum Technology,” he said.

He said that i-Hub Quantum, set up at IISER, Pune is working in the area of Quantum Technologies and developing atom interferometry-based sensing and navigation devices.

He said that the TIH at IIT Madras, namely, IITM Pravartak Technologies Foundation is working on developing a secure mobile phone for defence personnel.

“TIH at IIT Roorkee, namely, iHUB Divya Sampark supporting IDR Doot Mk-1, India’s first indigenous Nano drone for helping armed forces during counter terrorist/counter insurgency and room intervention operations,” he said.

he said that the TIH at IIT Mandi, namely, Human Computer Interaction (HCI) Foundation developing the Naval Combat Management System (NCMS). TIH at IISc Bengaluru developing integrated robotic joint actuators for precise control of automation systems etc.