Due to challenges on both the borders, there were challenges on resources as well. But to have success, the government and the Prime minister would ensure there was no shortage of resources, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday. “I can say this with confidence,” he asserted.
“COVID-19 has adversely impacted our economy and we need to pay special attention to efficient utilisation of our budget,” Mr. Singh addressed scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) at the annual awards ceremony.
The armed forces would face many new challenges in the days to come and technology could be used positively. In such a situation, while carrying out a realistic assessment, there was need to develop the capabilities quickly, according to needs, he stated.
Two systems
Mr. Singh handed over the DRDO-made Indian Maritime Situational Awareness System (IMSAS) to Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh and the Border Surveillance System (BOSS) to Army Chief Gen. Manoj Naravane.
“The system [BOSS] has been deployed at the Ladakh border area for day and night surveillance. The system facilitates monitoring and surveillance by automatically detecting the intrusions in harsh high-altitude sub-zero temperature areas with remote operation capability,” the Defence Ministry said in a statement. The system is being produced by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Machlipatnam.
The IMSAS is a state of the art, fully indigenous, high-performance intelligent software system that provided global maritime situational picture, marine planning tools and analytical capabilities to the Indian Navy, the Ministry said. The system provided maritime operational picture from the naval headquarters to each individual ship in sea to enable naval command and control, it added.
DRDO’s contributions
Speaking of the challenges in tackling COVID-19, Mr. Singh said the DRDO made a significant contribution by producing ventilators, masks, PPE kits and sanitisers. “The DRDO has helped the public and institutions in Delhi and Bihar in a very short time, by setting up large COVID-19 hospitals,” he noted.
Addressing the scientists, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen. Bipin Rawat said the private industry was also motivated and needed the scientists’ support. “I feel that in case of war in future, we will win it through indigenous weapons,” he said.
