- Prelims: Atmanirbhar, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Quad, modern technologies in defense etc
- Mains GS Paper II and III: Science and technology-Development and their applications and effects in everyday life etc
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
- There is a greater pitch for aatmanirbharta in the field of the defense inventory in India.
INSIGHTS ON THE ISSUE
Context
Atmanirbhar Bharat:
Steps taken in defense sector:
- Defence Production and Export Promotion Policy 2020 (DPEPP 2020)
- Make in India: 2014
Indian Air Force(IAF):
- It was effective right from the first campaign which was in 1948 where Pakistan intruded into J&K. The IAF played a very critical role.
- In 1965 Indo-Pakistan war air power was used with little less coordination, but they played an effective role.
Need for modernisation:
- Threat perception: To derive from threat perception in future days.
- Two front: Doctrine which has now become two front war policy.
- Net centric warfare.
- Aerospace kind of IAF to handle space assets in a required manner.
- Force multipliers that are air to air refuelers.
- To protect the airspace in a high manner.
Concerns:
- Induction: The induction rate in the air force has been slow.
- MIG 21 is accident prone as mentioned.
- Cost of making aircrafts indigenously has proved to be costly.
- Two front war; The concern for the military in general for the country and for the political leadership is to manage the two fronts.
- There is a lack of collaboration between PSUs and the private sector wrt airforce.
Need for new Doctrine in Air Force:
- Technology has progressed exponentially: Artificial intelligence and machine learning are being refined to mimic human cognitive abilities and intuition.
- Their incorporation would be a challenge that needs doctrinal analysis.
Vital infrastructure for Air Force:
- Combat enablers such as aerial refuellers
- Airborne Warning and Control System
- Transport and helicopter fleets
- Radars
- Communication systems, etc.
Way Forward
- Doctrine drives technology: given the ongoing advancements, the IAF doctrine would have to spell out new methods to meet the challenges of the mid-century.
- The roles and missions of the IAF would have to be re-assessed since space will be a major, if not a central, player in future conflicts.
- Emphasis on unmanned platforms and space assets, including a capability for satellites on call would be necessary.
- Air power with its niche strike, Airborne Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and precision attack capabilities should be merged in the drive towards jointness.
- The IAF’s new doctrine must accept acceleration of fresh thought, even as it acknowledges that new technology would result in an information overload which actually accentuates stress in human resources.
- Out of Political prism: The IAF doctrine must underscore that ‘national defense should not be filtered through a prism of the political dispensation.
- India as a regional power: these combat support assets are also vital for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief that are important cogs in military diplomacy and foreign policy
QUESTION FOR PRACTICE
Q. How is the S-400 air defense system technically superior to any other system presently available in the world ?(UPSC 2021) (200 WORDS, 10 MARKS)
