Are we truly capable of making indigenous weapons to match our counterparts?

Critical analysis on the capability of India in producing defense weapons

India achieved independence in the year 1947, since then we have set ourselves on a path of development and have not looked backwards. With time we have devised technologies which have caught eyes of developed nations. With the Chandrayaan 1 in action our country made history and became the fifth country in the world to reach Moon, showing clearly what the people of this country are capable of doing. The journey to development and space exploration didn't end there and with the development of the Mangalyaan, Indian Space Research Organisation became the only organisation after NASA to reach the orbit of Mars.

Our country has not only made developments in the field of space explorations but has also developed equally in the defense sector as well. India is now capable of making weapons indigenous which are strong enough to protect the country in time of crisis. But the question which looms over us is “Are these weapons strong enough to match our counterparts?” This can only be answered by first looking at the developments made in the Indian Defense and the upcoming projects to come alive.

Some of the recent weapon systems which have been included and undergoing testing for inclusion in the Indian Armed forces are:

• HAL Light Combat Aircraft
•  AGNI 5 Intercontinental Ballistic missile
•  PRITHVI 2 nuclear warhead missile
• Dhanush nuclear capable missile
• Advanced Pinaka Mark  2 Rocket System
•  Nuclear capable Cruise Missile – Nirbhaya
•  T-50 Fifth Generation fighter jets in collaboration with Russia
• F INSAS rifle to support the future infantry programme
• Future Infantry Soldier As A System programme
•  HAL’s Light Combat Helicopter
•  INS Arihant nuclear powered ballistic missile submarine
• INS Vikramaditya
• INS Vikrant

Clearly the developments made are remarkable. To strengthen the  mechanism of the country in such a short span  of time is indeed  a commendable job in itself. But are we matching our northern neighbors in military might? Is manpower a solution to the strengthening defense mechanism a question which still needs to answered and looked upon very seriously. China has successfully tested its Chengdu J-20 , a fifth generation aircraft , a beast in its league. While the India – Russia T- 50 PAK FA is still under development and Indian Airforce cutting down the initial order of 200 to 144 is worry some for the defense system of India. Talking about the Indidegenously developed HAL Tejas, the programme to introduce the light combat aircraft was  started in the year 1980, but its only in 2001 the plane took its first flight. And to shame us even further the plane was included in the IAF and Navy in 2015. Something which the government should look upon very seriously.

Problem with the home made defense systems

The home made plane still suffers problems and inadequacies in integrating its radars and censors. Tejas cannot be taxied back to flight as its brakes after it lands need to be first cooled off, extending the problems even further Tejas radar system is not accurate, and sometimes and becomes defective with large signal losses. The Kaveri Engines which powered the LCA could not produce desired results and thus the plane had to be  powered up using American F414 engines. These are some of the basic shortcoming of the Tejas programme. The advanced version - Tejas Mark 2 has still a long way to go to be actually included in the squadrons of the Indian Airforce.

Yes we are still a developing country , but that doesn't mean we can’t meet the deadlines for the projects we have set ourselves. In comparison to the Chinese military might , our naval and defense mechanism stands short , we may be developing weapons on our own and we may be the leading importers of weapons from other countries , but still our country is not yet powerful enough to handle another war with its northern neighbor. In my point of view, I believe that making indigenous weapons should be our primary aim, but in that pursuit we should not forget that the race for a stronger military won’t stop just because we are not at levels equal to that of other nations,  we need to act and act now.The government should and must set deadlines, strict deadlines, and see to it that government owned organisation like the DRDO must adhere to them.  The home made weapons will take time to reach technology levels which the developed countries already have, but in that pursuit we should keep importing weapon systems from outside, so that the military might of our country only increases and on testing times could match up with those in direct competition  with us. As a final word taking forever to build weapons and tagging it “homemade” won’t solve the problem of weakening defense mechanism of this country , setting strict deadlines and realistic targets, and actually meeting them, will!

About the Author: Shekhar Tanwar is a computer science engineer who is working with a renowned MNC and is a die heart defense aspirant. Guitar is his passion and he is very firm believer of physical fitness. This article is a way to help defense aspirants to present his critical views on the topic, on the forum so that collective exchange of thoughts can take place.