IAF to get more missiles that blunted Pak threats

Nearly two months after air defence missiles played a key role in thwarting threats from Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, the Ministry of Defence has approved the procurement of more such weapons along with 12 specialised warships that can lay mines undersea and even detect them.

In military parlance, these are called surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and are fired from the ground at airborne targets such as drones, planes and jets. The SAMs are mated with air defence radars that direct the missiles towards incoming targets.

During Operation Sindoor, Pakistan fired hundreds of drones and missiles at India, which were shot down by the layered air defence system that included the SAMs.

The SAMs are part of the acquisition proposals amounting to nearly Rs 1.05 lakh crore, a process to be undertaken through indigenous sourcing. The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the apex decision-making body on procurements in the MoD, chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, today accorded the acceptance of necessity (AoN) for the purchase of 10 separate equipment for the forces.

The MoD did not specify the count of SAMs to be procured, though sources said the stock used by the Air Force during the skirmishes with Pakistan would be replenished.

The DAC also approved the procurement of electronic warfare system, which is a specialised military technology used during combat to control the electromagnetic spectrum, including jamming, deceiving or spying, using radio waves and radar signals. An approval was also granted to buy a software called integrated common inventory management system, which will be used at joint logistics nodes created for the services. The 12 mine counter measure vessels were being demanded for long by the Navy.