Army steps on the gas for high-tech injection for futuristic warfare, plans to deploy ‘domain specialists’ | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: With rapid technological advancements changing the nature of warfare, the Army is now ramping up work on 16 specific technology clusters and plans to deploy ‘domain specialists’ to ensure it is a future-ready force with the required offensive power for the increasingly digitalized battlefields.
“The rate at which technology is changing is so rapid that we must continue to adapt and absorb. We are proactively engaging industry and academia, including the IITs and IISc, in our efforts to stay at par with the latest technological developments,” said Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Information Systems and Coordination). Lt Gen Rakesh Kapoor said Friday.
The Indian Armed Forces obviously have a long way to go when it comes to making the most of disruptive dual-use technologies for warfare, including in the field of non-kinetic warfare.
China is miles ahead in space, cyberspace, hypersonics, robotics, nanotechnology, lethal autonomous weapon systems, AI, DEWs and the like, along with the People’s Liberation Army’s long-standing emphasis on “computerized” and “intelligent” warfare.
However, the Indian Armed Forces are now turning to such technologies in a major way to catch up in this new strategic arena of competition. For example, the over 11 lakh strong army is working on multiple programs under technology clusters ranging from cyber, space, quantum, 5G/6G, blockchain technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented/virtual reality to directed energy weapons. DEWs), loitering munitions, robotics, drones and counter-drone systems.
“We have officers driving these clusters, with established benchmarks, timelines and monthly reviews. A roadmap has already been approved,” Lt Gen Kapoor said, adding that the Army was undergoing reorientation and restructuring as part of the larger ‘transformation’ underway.
In view of this, the Army is also pursuing 45 niche technologies identified for military applications, and about 120 indigenous projects are underway to develop and integrate them.
The military will also begin inducting “domain specialists” in cyber, information warfare and information technology, as well as linguistics in Mandarin and other languages, from mid-2025.
“Some domain specialists have already been introduced via the Territorial Army route. Now they will also be included in the regular army. The vacancies are being worked out and advertisements will be issued next month,” Lt Gen Kapoor said.
These specialists will have to be at least post-graduates in the relevant fields to be appointed as officers and graduates for JCOs (junior non-commissioned officers) and Havildars.
They will be incorporated into the Army Educational Corps (AEC), which is also being restructured and renamed the Army Knowledge & Enablers Corps, with a mandate to focus specifically on cyber, infotech, perception management and linguistics, including specialization in Mandarin, Burmese and other languages, as reported by TOI earlier.
In parallel, as part of the various ongoing ‘automation, digitalization and networking projects’, the Army is also pushing for integrated surveillance and intelligence centers on the battlefield, which will receive inputs from a wide range of sensors ranging from satellites and drones to radars and troops. on the ground, to provide a composite operational picture for commanders on both the Chinese and Pakistani fronts.