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DRDO, PSU and Private Defence Sector News
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DRDO to tweak aircraft engine to power battle tanks, locomotives
BANGALORE: India’s defence scientists are tweaking Kaveri engine — originally meant for the country’s light combat aircraft (LCA) project — to power
battle tanks, railway locomotives and commercial and naval ships, after project delays forced the country to seek help from private sector firms for the LCA project.
“We are developing the marine version of Kaveri called Kaveri Marine Gas Turbine for India’s Rajput class of ships. It has been transported to Naval Dockyard of Vishakapatnam and is being worked on in the test bed. After making the modifications, we will fit it on board of any Indian warship,” said a scientist at the department of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Originally meant for powering India’s LCAs, the Rs 2,839-crore Kaveri project is almost two decades old.
“The second potential we are seeing is in the Indian Railways which have to transport iron ore, metal and other heavy items — it will not only reduce the weight but also make transportation much faster,” the scientist added. Another defence official added that Kaveri could even be used for powering battle tanks, the way America’s Abrams tanks are fitted with Honeywell-manufactured gas turbine engines.
Meanwhile, officials are also working at developing a smaller version of Kaveri, which could power drones-unmanned aerial vehicles. “DRDO is also developing a mini Kaveri engine which has a power of 1.2 MW for other applications,” said a DRDO scientist. A top scientist from National Aerospace Laboratories also confirmed this.
A defence industry expert said: “The mini Kaveri will be used for payloads for the next generation of unmanned aerial vehicles also known as Drones which can be 7 kg in weight,” he said. The Indian defence is trying to make these Drones, using silica instead of metal so that when they are sent for attack or reconnaissance, they don’t leave any trace behind and disintegrate like sand. However, Kaveri will have to prove itself for these newer applications.
“There are certain technological challenges such as how to prevent gas turbine engine like Kaveri from getting stuck due to climatic conditions and sand in the desert area once it is fitted in armoured fighting land-based vehicles,” said a DRDO scientist.
Indeed, it could be some time before Kaveri is successfully deployed in other applications. “The applications of the Kaveri engine are wide but as it is designed for the aerospace platform, it needs to proven first before it can implemented in warships, commercial shipping, submarines and battle tanks,” the defence expert quoted earlier said.
BANGALORE: India’s defence scientists are tweaking Kaveri engine — originally meant for the country’s light combat aircraft (LCA) project — to power
battle tanks, railway locomotives and commercial and naval ships, after project delays forced the country to seek help from private sector firms for the LCA project.
“We are developing the marine version of Kaveri called Kaveri Marine Gas Turbine for India’s Rajput class of ships. It has been transported to Naval Dockyard of Vishakapatnam and is being worked on in the test bed. After making the modifications, we will fit it on board of any Indian warship,” said a scientist at the department of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Originally meant for powering India’s LCAs, the Rs 2,839-crore Kaveri project is almost two decades old.
“The second potential we are seeing is in the Indian Railways which have to transport iron ore, metal and other heavy items — it will not only reduce the weight but also make transportation much faster,” the scientist added. Another defence official added that Kaveri could even be used for powering battle tanks, the way America’s Abrams tanks are fitted with Honeywell-manufactured gas turbine engines.
Meanwhile, officials are also working at developing a smaller version of Kaveri, which could power drones-unmanned aerial vehicles. “DRDO is also developing a mini Kaveri engine which has a power of 1.2 MW for other applications,” said a DRDO scientist. A top scientist from National Aerospace Laboratories also confirmed this.
A defence industry expert said: “The mini Kaveri will be used for payloads for the next generation of unmanned aerial vehicles also known as Drones which can be 7 kg in weight,” he said. The Indian defence is trying to make these Drones, using silica instead of metal so that when they are sent for attack or reconnaissance, they don’t leave any trace behind and disintegrate like sand. However, Kaveri will have to prove itself for these newer applications.
“There are certain technological challenges such as how to prevent gas turbine engine like Kaveri from getting stuck due to climatic conditions and sand in the desert area once it is fitted in armoured fighting land-based vehicles,” said a DRDO scientist.
Indeed, it could be some time before Kaveri is successfully deployed in other applications. “The applications of the Kaveri engine are wide but as it is designed for the aerospace platform, it needs to proven first before it can implemented in warships, commercial shipping, submarines and battle tanks,” the defence expert quoted earlier said.
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Arms Cash
NEW DELHI, Aug 4 Asia Pulse - The Indian government on Monday said foreign exchange worth over Rs 12.61 billion (US$266 million) was earned by exporting defence items in the last three fiscal years.
"During the last three years, a sum of Rs 12.61 billion has been earned in foreign exchange through export of defence items," Defence Minister A K Antony said in reply to a Lok Sabha (Lower House) query.
Replying to another query, the Minister said Rs 84.98 billion was spent on procuring indigenous defence items in the three years and till June this year.
Antony said the country had incurred an expenditure of Rs 259.06 billion in importing defence equipment from various countries
India earns US$266mn in defence exports - LANKA BUSINESS ONLINE
NEW DELHI, Aug 4 Asia Pulse - The Indian government on Monday said foreign exchange worth over Rs 12.61 billion (US$266 million) was earned by exporting defence items in the last three fiscal years.
"During the last three years, a sum of Rs 12.61 billion has been earned in foreign exchange through export of defence items," Defence Minister A K Antony said in reply to a Lok Sabha (Lower House) query.
Replying to another query, the Minister said Rs 84.98 billion was spent on procuring indigenous defence items in the three years and till June this year.
Antony said the country had incurred an expenditure of Rs 259.06 billion in importing defence equipment from various countries
India earns US$266mn in defence exports - LANKA BUSINESS ONLINE
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New polymer to reduce radioactive waste in nuclear reactors
New polymer to reduce radioactive waste in nuclear reactors
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'Edge over terrorists in 26/11 possible if DRDO weapons used'
'Edge over terrorists in 26/11 possible if DRDO weapons used'
National : 'Edge over terrorists in 26/11 possible if DRDO weapons used' : 648240
New Delhi, Aug 12 Security forces would have had an edge over terrorists during the 26/11 Mumbai attacks if they were equipped with weapons developed by the country&aposs defence labs, a top DRDO official claimed here today.
Several technologies like stun grenades, chilli bombs and laser dazzlers are"not known to any one"in the security agencies, P S Goel, Chairman of the Recruitment and Assessment Centre, DRDO, said delivering the Aryabhatta Lecture at the annual meeting of the Astronautical Society of India here.
Goel, who is also a member of the National Security Advisory Board, said security forces would have gained an upper hand while fighting terrorists at Hotel Taj Mahal or Nariman House had they used DRDO-developed weapons.
Stun grenades and chilli bombs have the capacity to paralyse persons within the vicinity of the explosion for a few minutes, while laser dazzlers cause momentary blindness.
"The inertia of the system (administration) is so great that these technologies are not available to the law enforcing agencies. We have failed in giving any advantage to our security forces,"he said.
Goel, former Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, made a strong pitch for technologists to be a part of the national security apparatus.
" National security is too serious to be left to security agencies alone. Technologists must make it their business,"he said.
'Edge over terrorists in 26/11 possible if DRDO weapons used'
National : 'Edge over terrorists in 26/11 possible if DRDO weapons used' : 648240
New Delhi, Aug 12 Security forces would have had an edge over terrorists during the 26/11 Mumbai attacks if they were equipped with weapons developed by the country&aposs defence labs, a top DRDO official claimed here today.
Several technologies like stun grenades, chilli bombs and laser dazzlers are"not known to any one"in the security agencies, P S Goel, Chairman of the Recruitment and Assessment Centre, DRDO, said delivering the Aryabhatta Lecture at the annual meeting of the Astronautical Society of India here.
Goel, who is also a member of the National Security Advisory Board, said security forces would have gained an upper hand while fighting terrorists at Hotel Taj Mahal or Nariman House had they used DRDO-developed weapons.
Stun grenades and chilli bombs have the capacity to paralyse persons within the vicinity of the explosion for a few minutes, while laser dazzlers cause momentary blindness.
"The inertia of the system (administration) is so great that these technologies are not available to the law enforcing agencies. We have failed in giving any advantage to our security forces,"he said.
Goel, former Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, made a strong pitch for technologists to be a part of the national security apparatus.
" National security is too serious to be left to security agencies alone. Technologists must make it their business,"he said.
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Defence production needs to open up
BY : The Indian Express Limited.
Despite having one of the largest defence industries in the developing world, India has not managed to attain self-reliance in defence production and its export performance has been way off the mark, says a study.
And excessive protection given by the government to public sector undertakings (PSUs) and Ordnance Factories (OFs) has bred incompetence and made these non-competitive, says the study by industry body Assocham and consultancy firm Ernst and Young.
“The state of our DPSUs/OFs, their production capabilities in terms of both, quality and quantity, their accountability, competitiveness, the production accorded to them and their management are directly responsible for the present state of affairs,” the study says.
Also, an assured and captive domestic market, it says, has reduced the competitiveness and led to complacency.
“Excessive protection extended by government to defence undertakings including their management and Ordnance Factories has bred so much non-competitiveness in defence production that a meagre sum of Rs.11.6 billion was earned in foreign exchange through export items of defence items in last three years,” it says.
India’s defence industry consists of 40 OFs, eight defence PSUs and a small but emerging private sector.
“Even with an assured order from Defence Ministry to the tune of Rs 200 billion every year, defence PSUs and OFs, which have the capability to ramp up, have not made a dent in the export market and also failed to stop imports,” the study says.
In such an environment with immediate emphasis being on only developing import substitutes, India lacks cutting edge technology to produce state-or-the-art equipment. “So it is clear that exports were never a priority for either DPSUs or OFs,” it says.
The study says the export performance is unlikely to improve until India changes its current ’skewed’ defence industry policies, including the 26 per cent FDI cap.
India needs a well-defined export policy, it argues, clearly mapping out current potential countries and defence products for exports.
Defence exports, according to the study, could be accelerated with proper coordination between the Defence and the External Affairs ministries.
Defence production needs to open up IDRW.ORG
BY : The Indian Express Limited.
Despite having one of the largest defence industries in the developing world, India has not managed to attain self-reliance in defence production and its export performance has been way off the mark, says a study.
And excessive protection given by the government to public sector undertakings (PSUs) and Ordnance Factories (OFs) has bred incompetence and made these non-competitive, says the study by industry body Assocham and consultancy firm Ernst and Young.
“The state of our DPSUs/OFs, their production capabilities in terms of both, quality and quantity, their accountability, competitiveness, the production accorded to them and their management are directly responsible for the present state of affairs,” the study says.
Also, an assured and captive domestic market, it says, has reduced the competitiveness and led to complacency.
“Excessive protection extended by government to defence undertakings including their management and Ordnance Factories has bred so much non-competitiveness in defence production that a meagre sum of Rs.11.6 billion was earned in foreign exchange through export items of defence items in last three years,” it says.
India’s defence industry consists of 40 OFs, eight defence PSUs and a small but emerging private sector.
“Even with an assured order from Defence Ministry to the tune of Rs 200 billion every year, defence PSUs and OFs, which have the capability to ramp up, have not made a dent in the export market and also failed to stop imports,” the study says.
In such an environment with immediate emphasis being on only developing import substitutes, India lacks cutting edge technology to produce state-or-the-art equipment. “So it is clear that exports were never a priority for either DPSUs or OFs,” it says.
The study says the export performance is unlikely to improve until India changes its current ’skewed’ defence industry policies, including the 26 per cent FDI cap.
India needs a well-defined export policy, it argues, clearly mapping out current potential countries and defence products for exports.
Defence exports, according to the study, could be accelerated with proper coordination between the Defence and the External Affairs ministries.
Defence production needs to open up IDRW.ORG
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City firms to roll out anti-bomb robot for Army soon IDRW.ORG
City firms to roll out anti-bomb robot for Army soon
The first lot of DRDO’s bomb detection and disposal robot, Daksh, for the use of the Indian Army will roll out soon. City-based Dynalog India Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited and Theta Control are in the process of manufacturing Daksh, a two-foot-high, remote-operated, battery-run vehicle that weighs 350 kg and is designed to detect and defuse Improvised Explosive Devices (IED).
After the Army had placed orders for 20 robots in March, DRDO has been trying to sell the concept to security agencies like the National Security Guard and the police, as a tool to fight terror. “In the last two months the Mumbai Police and the CRPF have been showing interest,” said Alok Mukherjee, DRDO scientist at the Research and Development Establishment (Enggrs) and a key member of the Daksh team.
Daksh can be used in urban areas and country terrain. It can be used against militants in J&K and the North East as well as against Naxalites in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and other states, said Mukherjee. DRDO believes Daksh will be of use to paramilitary forces, the Airports Authority of India and Indian Railways to secure their areas.
“With this technology, we would be able to do what the US is doing with the drones in Afghanistan,” said Ajit Kavishwar, Director, Dynalog.
“Daksh can handle IEDs, take it out of a crowded place and scan the device with its X-ray component to confirm if the device is an IED. If it is a bomb, the on-board water-jet disrupter can defuse it,” Mukherjee said.
Daksh can lift a weight of 20 kg from a distance of around 3 metre. When operated on wireless mode, the robot can be controlled from a distance of 500 metre. “As compared to an imported model, an indigenously developed robot would be easy to maintain and can cater to Indian terrain,” said a BEL representative. “All the three companies together would be able to supply two robots a month; the first will take four months to make,” he added.
For many security agencies that may find the cost, Rs 1.75 crore, somewhat high, DRDO says they are in the process of devising a smaller version.
City firms to roll out anti-bomb robot for Army soon
The first lot of DRDO’s bomb detection and disposal robot, Daksh, for the use of the Indian Army will roll out soon. City-based Dynalog India Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited and Theta Control are in the process of manufacturing Daksh, a two-foot-high, remote-operated, battery-run vehicle that weighs 350 kg and is designed to detect and defuse Improvised Explosive Devices (IED).
After the Army had placed orders for 20 robots in March, DRDO has been trying to sell the concept to security agencies like the National Security Guard and the police, as a tool to fight terror. “In the last two months the Mumbai Police and the CRPF have been showing interest,” said Alok Mukherjee, DRDO scientist at the Research and Development Establishment (Enggrs) and a key member of the Daksh team.
Daksh can be used in urban areas and country terrain. It can be used against militants in J&K and the North East as well as against Naxalites in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and other states, said Mukherjee. DRDO believes Daksh will be of use to paramilitary forces, the Airports Authority of India and Indian Railways to secure their areas.
“With this technology, we would be able to do what the US is doing with the drones in Afghanistan,” said Ajit Kavishwar, Director, Dynalog.
“Daksh can handle IEDs, take it out of a crowded place and scan the device with its X-ray component to confirm if the device is an IED. If it is a bomb, the on-board water-jet disrupter can defuse it,” Mukherjee said.
Daksh can lift a weight of 20 kg from a distance of around 3 metre. When operated on wireless mode, the robot can be controlled from a distance of 500 metre. “As compared to an imported model, an indigenously developed robot would be easy to maintain and can cater to Indian terrain,” said a BEL representative. “All the three companies together would be able to supply two robots a month; the first will take four months to make,” he added.
For many security agencies that may find the cost, Rs 1.75 crore, somewhat high, DRDO says they are in the process of devising a smaller version.
youngindian
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Dr VK Saraswat to be New DRDO Head
August 28, 2009
Eminent missile scientist Dr. VK Saraswat will be the new head of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). He will take over from Shri M Natarajan on September 1, 2009 as the Secretary, Department of Defence Research & Development, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister and Director-General, DRDO. Dr. Saraswat is presently a Distinguished Scientist and Chief Controller Research and Development (Missiles and Strategic Systems) in the DRDO.
Padmashri Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat spearheaded the development of country’s strategic and tactical missile systems including the ‘Agni’ series of strategic missiles covering a range up to 3,000 kms. Dr. Saraswat, a Ph.D in Combustion Engineering, started his career in DRDO in 1972 at the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad and was responsible for the development of country’s first Liquid Propulsion Engine. As Project Director ‘Prithvi’’, he steered the design, development, production and induction of the first indigenous Surface-to-Surface missile system into the armed forces. The successful testing of ‘Dhanush’ missile on board a moving ship with high terminal accuracy brought a new dimension in the national defence capability. As Program Director AD (Air Defence), Dr. Saraswat pioneered the concept of theatre defence system and integration of national Air Defence elements. He was Director, Research Centre Imarat (RCI) before taking over as CCR&D(MSS) in November, 2005.
Dr. Saraswat is a forerunner in the development of number of critical missile technologies that were under denial due to the Missile Technology Control Regime, thus making India self-reliant in Missile Technologies. He has headed various committees of national importance.
Dr. Saraswat has received several awards including Prof Jai Krishna Memorial Award of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) and National Systems Gold Medal by the Systems Society of India. International Academy of Engineering, Russia elected Dr. Saraswat as a Member of the Academy and honoured him as an Academician
Dr VK Saraswat to be New DRDO Head | webnewswire.com
August 28, 2009
Eminent missile scientist Dr. VK Saraswat will be the new head of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). He will take over from Shri M Natarajan on September 1, 2009 as the Secretary, Department of Defence Research & Development, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister and Director-General, DRDO. Dr. Saraswat is presently a Distinguished Scientist and Chief Controller Research and Development (Missiles and Strategic Systems) in the DRDO.
Padmashri Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat spearheaded the development of country’s strategic and tactical missile systems including the ‘Agni’ series of strategic missiles covering a range up to 3,000 kms. Dr. Saraswat, a Ph.D in Combustion Engineering, started his career in DRDO in 1972 at the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad and was responsible for the development of country’s first Liquid Propulsion Engine. As Project Director ‘Prithvi’’, he steered the design, development, production and induction of the first indigenous Surface-to-Surface missile system into the armed forces. The successful testing of ‘Dhanush’ missile on board a moving ship with high terminal accuracy brought a new dimension in the national defence capability. As Program Director AD (Air Defence), Dr. Saraswat pioneered the concept of theatre defence system and integration of national Air Defence elements. He was Director, Research Centre Imarat (RCI) before taking over as CCR&D(MSS) in November, 2005.
Dr. Saraswat is a forerunner in the development of number of critical missile technologies that were under denial due to the Missile Technology Control Regime, thus making India self-reliant in Missile Technologies. He has headed various committees of national importance.
Dr. Saraswat has received several awards including Prof Jai Krishna Memorial Award of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) and National Systems Gold Medal by the Systems Society of India. International Academy of Engineering, Russia elected Dr. Saraswat as a Member of the Academy and honoured him as an Academician
Dr VK Saraswat to be New DRDO Head | webnewswire.com
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DRDO came in way of acquiring key radars before Kargil: Malik IDRW.ORG
Former Army chief V P Malik, who led the army during the 1999 Kargil war, has said casualties in the conflict could have been reduced had DRDO “not come in the way” in the acquisition of weapon-locating radars.
“We had one or two incidents particularly on the weapon locating radar. If the DRDO had not come in the way we would have got them before the Kargil war and that would have definitely reduced our casualties,” he told Karan Thapar during a show.
Asked whether DRDO was “slight boastful” in claims over developing weapons, Malik said “well that has been our (armed forces’) experience over the development of weapons and equipment the DRDO has delivered or not delivered.”
On asked if A P J Abdul Kalam, during his stint as the Director-General of the DRDO, overestimated the country’s capacity and ability, Malik said “I do not want to go more into that.”
Former Army chief V P Malik, who led the army during the 1999 Kargil war, has said casualties in the conflict could have been reduced had DRDO “not come in the way” in the acquisition of weapon-locating radars.
“We had one or two incidents particularly on the weapon locating radar. If the DRDO had not come in the way we would have got them before the Kargil war and that would have definitely reduced our casualties,” he told Karan Thapar during a show.
Asked whether DRDO was “slight boastful” in claims over developing weapons, Malik said “well that has been our (armed forces’) experience over the development of weapons and equipment the DRDO has delivered or not delivered.”
On asked if A P J Abdul Kalam, during his stint as the Director-General of the DRDO, overestimated the country’s capacity and ability, Malik said “I do not want to go more into that.”
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Powerhouse of technology
With 52 laboratories under it, the DRDO is one of the biggest and most versatile models of defence R&D in the world.
WHEN M. Natarajan, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, laid down office on August 31 he must have done so with a sense of satisfaction. For, India’s Main Battle Tank (MBT) Arjun, which he “fathered”, has been inducted into the Army and the nuclear-powered submarine Arihant, which was built under the top-secret Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) programme of which he was the chief coordinator, was launched on July 26. Arihant has propelled India into an elite club of six countries with their own nuclear-powered boats.
A few days before Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched Arihant in Visakhapatnam, Natarajan told this correspondent: “I am happy that the boat is being launched during my tenure.” The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), of which Natarajan was the Director-General, funded the ATV project. Natarajan was also Secretary, Defence R&D, and Director-General, Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA).
He capped his career in the DRDO – after having joined it in 1970 – by becoming its Director-General in 2004. For 30 years, he worked on several important projects relating to the design and development of tracked vehicles. He was associated with Arjun right from its inception at the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE) at Avadi, near Chennai. He became the Programme Director of the Arjun project in 1987 and the Director of the CVRDE in December 1989. He ensured that India had its indigenous state-of-the-art Arjun and a self-propelled gun system Bhim.
Today, Arjun has gone into production and the Army’s 43rd Regiment is equipped with it. The Army had placed an order for 124 Arjuns. The Heavy Vehicles Factory (HVF) at Avadi has delivered 45 tanks. On August 21, the first batch of armoured ambulances, which Natarajan designed and built, rolled out of the Ordnance Factory at Medak in Andhra Pradesh.
As Director-General, ADA, Natarajan gave a new direction to the development of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Tejas, which has done 1,163 sorties. Tejas is now ready for initial operational clearance. The Indian Air Force (IAF) has placed orders for 20 aircraft. Natarajan contributed to the mechanical systems of Tejas.
With 52 laboratories under it, the DRDO is one of the biggest and most versatile models of defence R&D in the world. Natarajan calls it “a technological powerhouse”. These laboratories, situated in different parts of the country, have proven competence in developing strategic military hardware and related technologies in diverse disciplines such as aeronautics, missiles, armaments and naval systems, combat vehicles, strategic systems, electronics, life sciences and materials. They have equipped the three services with MBTs, armoured ambulances, a variety of missiles, radars, the multi-barrel rocket launcher Pinaka, life-saving medicines, self-heating gloves and socks for soldiers posted at high altitudes such as Siachen and Leh, sonars, parachutes, carbon nano tube, and bullet-proof jackets.
The armed forces have become mightier with tanks capable of laying multispan bridges; vehicles that plant or sweep mines; robots that retrieve explosives; autonomous underwater vehicles; missile launchers; vehicles that monitor the use of nuclear, biological and chemical agents; underground shelters for use during chemical warfare; stretchers; laser guns; rifles; carbines; pistols; propellants; explosives; transgenic tomatoes; hybrid milch animals; aloe vera cream to treat frostbite; Leh Berry juice; ready-to-eat pulav and biryani; anti-leucoderma cream; composites; anti-corrosive paints; anti-fouling paints; and desalination plants, all developed by the DRDO.
A LANDMARK
The DRDO celebrated its golden jubilee in 2008. But the previous year itself it reached another landmark. The year witnessed the successful launches of Agni III, the underwater K-15 missile from a submerged pontoon, and the ballistic interceptor missile. Other notable events include the missile launch test of Tejas, which was the first step in its weaponisation, followed by flights with drop tanks and fuel transfer. The year also saw substantial success in the DRDO’s tactical programmes through delivery of radars, electronic warfare and armament systems.
In an interview to Frontline in Chennai on August 4, Natarajan underscored three issues that were of utmost importance to the DRDO – nurturing human resource, which is “a critical factor” in a defence R&D organisation; self-reliance; and the need to set up a Defence Technology Commission (DTC) as recommended by the Dr P. Rama Rao Committee.
Natarajan praised the contribution made by his predecessors to the growth of the DRDO. “With the definitive transformation that has taken place in the DRDO in the past five decades because of the efforts of my illustrious predecessors, the organisation can today be justifiably proud of being a technological powerhouse not only for defence but in multitudes of scientific and engineering disciplines with quantifiable success,” he said.
According to him, Arjun riding the sand dunes of Rajasthan; Tejas landing at Leh at the rarefied height of about 10,600 feet (3,180 metres), which proved the performance of its fly-by-wire technology; the launch of K-15 missiles from under the sea; the successful tests of the interceptor missiles, which are a forerunner to India building a missile defence shield; the demonstration of networked sensors in real-time operations featuring radars; electro-optics and satellites for a networked battlefield; specialised material for aircraft structures and the Navy’s ships; innovative biomedical appliances; and life-science products “bear testimony to the scientific prowess of the DRDO”.
CHALLENGES
With an eye on the future, the DRDO has embarked on projects to develop directed-energy weapons, anti-satellite capabilities, micro-satellites, very low-frequency communication, nano materials, advanced propulsion systems, a variety of sensors and seekers, navigation systems, electronically scanned array radars, fuel cells and batteries, AB-class steel for ship-building, and titanium alloys and carbon composites for aerospace applications.
“Each of these developments has its own challenges and more than 3,000 young and intelligent scientists are raring to be up to the task,” Natarajan said.
If the DRDO was building a multimode radar with a phased array, it could be improved upon to become electronically scanned so that the rotation of the antenna was not a constraint, he said. The challenge lay in how to package it into a small aircraft like Tejas or a medium combat aircraft because the space in the nose-cone of the aircraft is limited. “An even more daunting challenge is the development of high-end seekers made for missiles or satellites or electronic warfare systems,” he said.
These were indeed challenges because a large body of scientists was needed to work in the physics of developing these technologies.
Natarajan explained: “We need scientists, technologists, technicians, pure academics and scientific assistants [in the DRDO] because when you develop such high-end products, you also need to build specialised machines for manufacturing them.” He underlined the importance of leadership in science, technology and engineering.
BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Army’S 43RD Regiment is equipped with the state-of-the-art Main Battle Tank Arjun, developed by the DRDO.
Even a simple mechanical hinge in a door can be improved by reducing its weight and increasing its lubricity. “When you gain in acoustics, it does not make a screeching sound. A clever designer will package a restoring spring in it. All these parts will demand far more precision than the Aligarh hinge,” he said, as the others in the room burst into laughter.
“That is why academic support is important. Academics will have to work in tandem with us. It will be good for the country if academics learn how to migrate to industry and research centres for practical work and go back to the portals of academia so that they can train students and technicians,” Natarajan said.
Throughout the two-hour interview, he reiterated that “human resource becomes a critical factor” in the kind of endeavour that the DRDO was engaged in. “The strength for this foundation [the DRDO] comes primarily from its human resource, comprising scientists and technologists, technicians and scientific staff, all working with appropriately digitised tasks, and integrating their efforts into a whole.”
Natarajan said “the insatiable demand for advanced weapon systems and sensors cannot be met by the DRDO alone with its extremely limited manpower and infrastructure”. The solution to this lay in evolving innovative strategies to draw on the potentials of academia, business houses and industry besides structurally binding the stakeholders, the developers, the armed forces, industry and the government together.
The developers could be anybody – the DRDO, the public sector units or private companies. Natarajan said, “The Rama Rao Committee has sought to indicate the possible route to accomplish the goal. In this context its recommendation to evolve a DTC akin to the Atomic Energy Commission and the Space Commission assumes significance.”
(A committee headed by Dr P. Rama Rao, former Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, recommended in 2008 that the DTC restore the DRDO’s role in giving scientific advice in the purchase of weapons from abroad and formulate “a clear-cut policy on self-reliance”.)
He said policy initiatives should bind the DRDO, the services, public sector units, private companies and the academia together. “There has to be an overarching body [the DTC] which constantly reminds these independent entities that they should not operate in a disjointed manner. Otherwise, achieving self-reliance will become a difficult task,” he said.
For instance, he said, if the MBT Arjun, the LCA, the tactical missiles or the electronic warfare systems developed by the DRDO were to be “10 per cent deficient from the so-called ideal” and as a consequence were not allowed to enter production, the question of improving them or addressing the deficiency would be scuttled.
“For you do not even give a foothold to the product. The user may get away by saying it is not my job [problem]. But someone has to care for the product,” he said.
The issue was not one-to-one equipment replacement but developing total systems capability. In such a situation, deficiency in a system could be addressed by aggregating products developed in India or even by combining some imports.
He said it was the DRDO’s good fortune that its scientific community pressed ahead to bring about better communication and meeting of minds among the various stakeholders. “I am happy to have contributed to this subtle but significant change,” Natarajan said.
He quoted several instances of innovative work done by the organisation. Although the MiG-27 was not designed by the DRDO, it could add value to the aircraft because of its development of avionics for Tejas and other programmes at various aeronautical systems laboratories. Gallium arsenide solar panels developed by the DRDO’s Solid State Physics Laboratory in New Delhi and produced by the Gallium Arsenide Technology Enabling Centre in Hyderabad have been used in ISRO’s satellites.
Parachutes developed by its Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment in Agra were used in soft-landing its recoverable satellite (Space Capsule Recovery Experiment).
The CVRDE, which designed and developed Arjun, had nothing to do with Tejas but it successfully designed the gearbox for the aircraft. The centre also developed a power take-off shaft made of titanium alloy for aircraft. The shaft, which weighs less than 2 kg, transmitted 250 horsepower at 20,000 revolutions per minute. “A decade ago, one could not have dreamt that the CVRDE could develop these products,” said Natarajan.
Natarajan said: “I am fully confident that with the continued support of the government, the armed forces, the industry magnates, our academic institutions and well-wishers from the public, the DRDO will not only keep its flag flying high but march towards making the nation proud. The DRDO will contribute meaningfully to ensure the security of the nation and a smile on the faces of its billion-plus people.”
With 52 laboratories under it, the DRDO is one of the biggest and most versatile models of defence R&D in the world.
WHEN M. Natarajan, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, laid down office on August 31 he must have done so with a sense of satisfaction. For, India’s Main Battle Tank (MBT) Arjun, which he “fathered”, has been inducted into the Army and the nuclear-powered submarine Arihant, which was built under the top-secret Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) programme of which he was the chief coordinator, was launched on July 26. Arihant has propelled India into an elite club of six countries with their own nuclear-powered boats.
A few days before Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched Arihant in Visakhapatnam, Natarajan told this correspondent: “I am happy that the boat is being launched during my tenure.” The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), of which Natarajan was the Director-General, funded the ATV project. Natarajan was also Secretary, Defence R&D, and Director-General, Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA).
He capped his career in the DRDO – after having joined it in 1970 – by becoming its Director-General in 2004. For 30 years, he worked on several important projects relating to the design and development of tracked vehicles. He was associated with Arjun right from its inception at the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE) at Avadi, near Chennai. He became the Programme Director of the Arjun project in 1987 and the Director of the CVRDE in December 1989. He ensured that India had its indigenous state-of-the-art Arjun and a self-propelled gun system Bhim.
Today, Arjun has gone into production and the Army’s 43rd Regiment is equipped with it. The Army had placed an order for 124 Arjuns. The Heavy Vehicles Factory (HVF) at Avadi has delivered 45 tanks. On August 21, the first batch of armoured ambulances, which Natarajan designed and built, rolled out of the Ordnance Factory at Medak in Andhra Pradesh.
As Director-General, ADA, Natarajan gave a new direction to the development of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Tejas, which has done 1,163 sorties. Tejas is now ready for initial operational clearance. The Indian Air Force (IAF) has placed orders for 20 aircraft. Natarajan contributed to the mechanical systems of Tejas.
With 52 laboratories under it, the DRDO is one of the biggest and most versatile models of defence R&D in the world. Natarajan calls it “a technological powerhouse”. These laboratories, situated in different parts of the country, have proven competence in developing strategic military hardware and related technologies in diverse disciplines such as aeronautics, missiles, armaments and naval systems, combat vehicles, strategic systems, electronics, life sciences and materials. They have equipped the three services with MBTs, armoured ambulances, a variety of missiles, radars, the multi-barrel rocket launcher Pinaka, life-saving medicines, self-heating gloves and socks for soldiers posted at high altitudes such as Siachen and Leh, sonars, parachutes, carbon nano tube, and bullet-proof jackets.
The armed forces have become mightier with tanks capable of laying multispan bridges; vehicles that plant or sweep mines; robots that retrieve explosives; autonomous underwater vehicles; missile launchers; vehicles that monitor the use of nuclear, biological and chemical agents; underground shelters for use during chemical warfare; stretchers; laser guns; rifles; carbines; pistols; propellants; explosives; transgenic tomatoes; hybrid milch animals; aloe vera cream to treat frostbite; Leh Berry juice; ready-to-eat pulav and biryani; anti-leucoderma cream; composites; anti-corrosive paints; anti-fouling paints; and desalination plants, all developed by the DRDO.
A LANDMARK
The DRDO celebrated its golden jubilee in 2008. But the previous year itself it reached another landmark. The year witnessed the successful launches of Agni III, the underwater K-15 missile from a submerged pontoon, and the ballistic interceptor missile. Other notable events include the missile launch test of Tejas, which was the first step in its weaponisation, followed by flights with drop tanks and fuel transfer. The year also saw substantial success in the DRDO’s tactical programmes through delivery of radars, electronic warfare and armament systems.
In an interview to Frontline in Chennai on August 4, Natarajan underscored three issues that were of utmost importance to the DRDO – nurturing human resource, which is “a critical factor” in a defence R&D organisation; self-reliance; and the need to set up a Defence Technology Commission (DTC) as recommended by the Dr P. Rama Rao Committee.
Natarajan praised the contribution made by his predecessors to the growth of the DRDO. “With the definitive transformation that has taken place in the DRDO in the past five decades because of the efforts of my illustrious predecessors, the organisation can today be justifiably proud of being a technological powerhouse not only for defence but in multitudes of scientific and engineering disciplines with quantifiable success,” he said.
According to him, Arjun riding the sand dunes of Rajasthan; Tejas landing at Leh at the rarefied height of about 10,600 feet (3,180 metres), which proved the performance of its fly-by-wire technology; the launch of K-15 missiles from under the sea; the successful tests of the interceptor missiles, which are a forerunner to India building a missile defence shield; the demonstration of networked sensors in real-time operations featuring radars; electro-optics and satellites for a networked battlefield; specialised material for aircraft structures and the Navy’s ships; innovative biomedical appliances; and life-science products “bear testimony to the scientific prowess of the DRDO”.
CHALLENGES
With an eye on the future, the DRDO has embarked on projects to develop directed-energy weapons, anti-satellite capabilities, micro-satellites, very low-frequency communication, nano materials, advanced propulsion systems, a variety of sensors and seekers, navigation systems, electronically scanned array radars, fuel cells and batteries, AB-class steel for ship-building, and titanium alloys and carbon composites for aerospace applications.
“Each of these developments has its own challenges and more than 3,000 young and intelligent scientists are raring to be up to the task,” Natarajan said.
If the DRDO was building a multimode radar with a phased array, it could be improved upon to become electronically scanned so that the rotation of the antenna was not a constraint, he said. The challenge lay in how to package it into a small aircraft like Tejas or a medium combat aircraft because the space in the nose-cone of the aircraft is limited. “An even more daunting challenge is the development of high-end seekers made for missiles or satellites or electronic warfare systems,” he said.
These were indeed challenges because a large body of scientists was needed to work in the physics of developing these technologies.
Natarajan explained: “We need scientists, technologists, technicians, pure academics and scientific assistants [in the DRDO] because when you develop such high-end products, you also need to build specialised machines for manufacturing them.” He underlined the importance of leadership in science, technology and engineering.
BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Army’S 43RD Regiment is equipped with the state-of-the-art Main Battle Tank Arjun, developed by the DRDO.
Even a simple mechanical hinge in a door can be improved by reducing its weight and increasing its lubricity. “When you gain in acoustics, it does not make a screeching sound. A clever designer will package a restoring spring in it. All these parts will demand far more precision than the Aligarh hinge,” he said, as the others in the room burst into laughter.
“That is why academic support is important. Academics will have to work in tandem with us. It will be good for the country if academics learn how to migrate to industry and research centres for practical work and go back to the portals of academia so that they can train students and technicians,” Natarajan said.
Throughout the two-hour interview, he reiterated that “human resource becomes a critical factor” in the kind of endeavour that the DRDO was engaged in. “The strength for this foundation [the DRDO] comes primarily from its human resource, comprising scientists and technologists, technicians and scientific staff, all working with appropriately digitised tasks, and integrating their efforts into a whole.”
Natarajan said “the insatiable demand for advanced weapon systems and sensors cannot be met by the DRDO alone with its extremely limited manpower and infrastructure”. The solution to this lay in evolving innovative strategies to draw on the potentials of academia, business houses and industry besides structurally binding the stakeholders, the developers, the armed forces, industry and the government together.
The developers could be anybody – the DRDO, the public sector units or private companies. Natarajan said, “The Rama Rao Committee has sought to indicate the possible route to accomplish the goal. In this context its recommendation to evolve a DTC akin to the Atomic Energy Commission and the Space Commission assumes significance.”
(A committee headed by Dr P. Rama Rao, former Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, recommended in 2008 that the DTC restore the DRDO’s role in giving scientific advice in the purchase of weapons from abroad and formulate “a clear-cut policy on self-reliance”.)
He said policy initiatives should bind the DRDO, the services, public sector units, private companies and the academia together. “There has to be an overarching body [the DTC] which constantly reminds these independent entities that they should not operate in a disjointed manner. Otherwise, achieving self-reliance will become a difficult task,” he said.
For instance, he said, if the MBT Arjun, the LCA, the tactical missiles or the electronic warfare systems developed by the DRDO were to be “10 per cent deficient from the so-called ideal” and as a consequence were not allowed to enter production, the question of improving them or addressing the deficiency would be scuttled.
“For you do not even give a foothold to the product. The user may get away by saying it is not my job [problem]. But someone has to care for the product,” he said.
The issue was not one-to-one equipment replacement but developing total systems capability. In such a situation, deficiency in a system could be addressed by aggregating products developed in India or even by combining some imports.
He said it was the DRDO’s good fortune that its scientific community pressed ahead to bring about better communication and meeting of minds among the various stakeholders. “I am happy to have contributed to this subtle but significant change,” Natarajan said.
He quoted several instances of innovative work done by the organisation. Although the MiG-27 was not designed by the DRDO, it could add value to the aircraft because of its development of avionics for Tejas and other programmes at various aeronautical systems laboratories. Gallium arsenide solar panels developed by the DRDO’s Solid State Physics Laboratory in New Delhi and produced by the Gallium Arsenide Technology Enabling Centre in Hyderabad have been used in ISRO’s satellites.
Parachutes developed by its Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment in Agra were used in soft-landing its recoverable satellite (Space Capsule Recovery Experiment).
The CVRDE, which designed and developed Arjun, had nothing to do with Tejas but it successfully designed the gearbox for the aircraft. The centre also developed a power take-off shaft made of titanium alloy for aircraft. The shaft, which weighs less than 2 kg, transmitted 250 horsepower at 20,000 revolutions per minute. “A decade ago, one could not have dreamt that the CVRDE could develop these products,” said Natarajan.
Natarajan said: “I am fully confident that with the continued support of the government, the armed forces, the industry magnates, our academic institutions and well-wishers from the public, the DRDO will not only keep its flag flying high but march towards making the nation proud. The DRDO will contribute meaningfully to ensure the security of the nation and a smile on the faces of its billion-plus people.”
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Driving force
BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The centenary monument at the HEMRL.
A WONDERFUL monument with a plaque reading “HEMRL Centenary Monument – 1908-2008…” occupies the foyer of the High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), Pune. On top of it is a metal sculpture of the chemical structure of China Lake-20, or CL-20, a molecule that can be incorporated into both propellants and explosives. On its sides are wooden models of missiles developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Manish Bharadwaj, Scientist, and J.R. Peshave, Technical Officer, at the HEMRL, reading this correspondent’s thoughts, said: “This monument is our pride.”
Everyone at the laboratory, from A. Subhananda Rao, its Director, to the junior-most skilled worker is proud of its 100-year-old heritage. Way back in 1908, the HEMRL began functioning as the Chemical Examiner’s Office at Nainital (now in Uttarakhand). In the decades that followed, it underwent radical changes in its charter of duties, shifted locations and finally got established in Pune in 1936. In 1995, it was rechristened HEMRL.
Today HEMRL is the only laboratory of its kind in the country dealing with high-energy materials such as propellants and ammunition required for missiles, rockets, battle tanks, artillery, guns, rifles and carbines. It has developed warheads for missiles; liquid fuel for torpedoes; explosive reactive armour for battle tanks; mine inflammables to set waterways on fire; powerful explosives to demolish buildings; fuel-air explosives to clear landmines; smokeless propellants, anti-laser grenades and illuminating flares. It makes the lethal ammunition for Pinaka, the indigenously developed multi-barrel rocket launching system. It is developing nanotechnology in seven types of high explosives, including RDX (Research Department Explosive), HMX (Her Majesty’s Explosive) and ammonium perchlorate.
Most importantly, the HEMRL has developed diverse rocket motors that power a variety of missiles, including Agni-I and Agni-II, Akash, Nag and Trishul. Its latest achievement is the production of powerful motors that propel the K-15 missile. K-15 will be fired from under water, from the nuclear-powered submarine Arihant. The HEMRL also makes motors that help missiles perform manoeuvres to avoid detection by radars. It has developed motors that jettison the missile’s spent stages.
Subhananda Rao said: “Wherever explosives and propellants are there, we are there. Our quest is to provide ammunition for all the armaments of the Army, the Navy and the Indian Air Force. That is why our motto is ‘Power Behind the Systems.’ Self-reliance is our forte. We emphasise safety and quality.” The HEMRL’s thrust area is solid rocket propellants. “We have developed an entire range of propellants for missiles such as ram-jet Akash, Trishul, Nag, Agni systems, Shourya and Prithvi Air Defence Systems,” said Subhananda Rao, who has designed and developed more than 30 propulsion systems for India’s tactical and strategic missiles.
S.N. Asthana, Associate Director, said: “Propellants developed by the HEMRL provide thrust to missiles and tank/gun munitions whereas explosives developed by it impart lethal power to warheads and projectiles.” B. Bhattacharya, Associate Director, said: “Name any missile system in India and it is linked to the HEMRL through motors, propellants or explosives.”
It is the propulsion system that makes a missile either a tactical one or a strategic one, such as an intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) or an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM). The propulsion systems for strategic missiles and K-15 missiles were developed by the DRDO’s largest laboratory.
The HEMRL has made important contributions to the development of India’s ballistic missile defence shield, the Advanced Air Defence System (AADS). In this system, an incoming “enemy” ballistic missile is knocked out in mid-flight by the DRDO’s interceptor missile. Three tests of such interceptor missile have been successful in a row.
Developing motors and propellants for missiles is quite different from making them for civilian launch vehicles. While launch vehicles for civilian applications can afford to have a slow lift-off, the DRDO’s missiles should accelerate fast. While the propellants on board civilian launch vehicles have a burn rate of 8 mm per second, the HEMRL-developed propellants have a burn-rate of 40 mm per second.
While rockets for civilian applications are launched in normal temperatures, DRDO-developed missiles function effectively at -40°0 Celsius at Siachen or +50°0 C in the deserts of Rajasthan. “So the propellants need a special casting,” said Subhananda Rao.
“We need to ensure 10 to 15 years of life for the missiles. We make motors with a high margin of safety and the capability for quick reaction too. They are high-acceleration motors,” he added. The DRDO’s missiles should withstand rigours and vibrations because they are moved from place to place. “So this class of missile motors have to be extremely robust and operate at extreme temperatures,” explained Bhattacharya.
For the canister-launched Shourya missile, the HEMRL has developed a generator that produces gas to push it out of the canister. The U.S., Russia and India are the only countries to develop the total technology needed for the gas generators.
The HEMRL was using RDX or HMX for missile warheads. It has now shifted entirely to HMX. It has developed the HMX composition for Akash and Nag. The laboratory had developed advanced demolition charges for use by the Army, Asthana said. These charges have civil applications, too. The laboratory has provided explosive cords to cut open the canopy of the Light Combat Aircraft, Tejas, to enable the pilot to eject in an emergency.
The HEMRL has embarked on the modernisation of gun ammunition. Its thrust is the modular charge system for gun propellants, which has an edge over the charge housed in cloth bags. The laboratory is mastering the technology of low-vulnerability (LOVA) propellants for gun ammunition. Amarjit Singh, Associate Director, said it had developed enhanced-energy LOVA propellants. This made them safer to use.
It has also developed the technology for making combustible cartridge cases (CCC) for gun ammunition. The CCCs are produced in partnership with a private industry. “The indigenous CCC technology has not only replaced costly imported brass cartridge cases, saving foreign exchange, but reduced logistic problems,” said Amarjit Singh.
The laboratory has synthesised CL-20. “It is a wonderful chemical. It can change the scenario of conventional explosives. We have given the licence to a private industry to produce it,” said Subhananda Rao. The HEMRL has developed FOX-7 (Field Ordnance Explosive) and also amorphous boron. “This [amorphous boron] is one of the greatest things to be produced here,” said Bhattacharya. The technology for developing amorphous boron was known only to a few countries.
A nanotechnology centre is coming up on the 340-hectare HEMRL campus. The laboratory has set up an Advanced Research Centre in High Energy Materials, funded by the DRDO, on the University of Hyderabad campus.
It has embarked on an ambitious programme in the area of insensitive explosives to overcome the problem of explosion by unplanned stimuli. “It will be of great advantage from the logistics point of view,” said Manish Bharadwaj.
EXPLOSIVE REACTOR ARMOUR
A visible success of the HEMRL is in developing the explosive reactor armour (ERA) for battle tanks. The ERA is a novel concept wherein the explosive reaction disrupts and defeats even the latest anti-tank missiles. A. Appa Rao, Associate Director, explained: “While the normal armour is passive, the ERA will react to the penetration of the incoming missile with the help of explosives sandwiched between armour plates. The explosives generate sufficient energy to destroy the incoming missile. The missile does not penetrate the entire thickness of the armour. The missile is deflected by an explosive force.”
More than 600 T-72 (CI Ajeya) tanks of the Army have been refurbished with the ERA. “We have developed a hybrid armour that can take care of tandem warheads and kinetic energy projectiles,” Appa Rao said.
A big facility of the HEMRL is coming up at Nashik. It will process propellants for large-sized case-bonded rocket motors. The facility, with more than 80 technical buildings and critical equipment, will process 100 tonnes of propellants a year. The processing will involve a new technology called pressure casting, which will improve the mechanical properties and energy of the propellants.
“The plant will meet the futuristic requirements of our missile programme,” said Subhananda Rao.
BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The centenary monument at the HEMRL.
A WONDERFUL monument with a plaque reading “HEMRL Centenary Monument – 1908-2008…” occupies the foyer of the High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), Pune. On top of it is a metal sculpture of the chemical structure of China Lake-20, or CL-20, a molecule that can be incorporated into both propellants and explosives. On its sides are wooden models of missiles developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Manish Bharadwaj, Scientist, and J.R. Peshave, Technical Officer, at the HEMRL, reading this correspondent’s thoughts, said: “This monument is our pride.”
Everyone at the laboratory, from A. Subhananda Rao, its Director, to the junior-most skilled worker is proud of its 100-year-old heritage. Way back in 1908, the HEMRL began functioning as the Chemical Examiner’s Office at Nainital (now in Uttarakhand). In the decades that followed, it underwent radical changes in its charter of duties, shifted locations and finally got established in Pune in 1936. In 1995, it was rechristened HEMRL.
Today HEMRL is the only laboratory of its kind in the country dealing with high-energy materials such as propellants and ammunition required for missiles, rockets, battle tanks, artillery, guns, rifles and carbines. It has developed warheads for missiles; liquid fuel for torpedoes; explosive reactive armour for battle tanks; mine inflammables to set waterways on fire; powerful explosives to demolish buildings; fuel-air explosives to clear landmines; smokeless propellants, anti-laser grenades and illuminating flares. It makes the lethal ammunition for Pinaka, the indigenously developed multi-barrel rocket launching system. It is developing nanotechnology in seven types of high explosives, including RDX (Research Department Explosive), HMX (Her Majesty’s Explosive) and ammonium perchlorate.
Most importantly, the HEMRL has developed diverse rocket motors that power a variety of missiles, including Agni-I and Agni-II, Akash, Nag and Trishul. Its latest achievement is the production of powerful motors that propel the K-15 missile. K-15 will be fired from under water, from the nuclear-powered submarine Arihant. The HEMRL also makes motors that help missiles perform manoeuvres to avoid detection by radars. It has developed motors that jettison the missile’s spent stages.
Subhananda Rao said: “Wherever explosives and propellants are there, we are there. Our quest is to provide ammunition for all the armaments of the Army, the Navy and the Indian Air Force. That is why our motto is ‘Power Behind the Systems.’ Self-reliance is our forte. We emphasise safety and quality.” The HEMRL’s thrust area is solid rocket propellants. “We have developed an entire range of propellants for missiles such as ram-jet Akash, Trishul, Nag, Agni systems, Shourya and Prithvi Air Defence Systems,” said Subhananda Rao, who has designed and developed more than 30 propulsion systems for India’s tactical and strategic missiles.
S.N. Asthana, Associate Director, said: “Propellants developed by the HEMRL provide thrust to missiles and tank/gun munitions whereas explosives developed by it impart lethal power to warheads and projectiles.” B. Bhattacharya, Associate Director, said: “Name any missile system in India and it is linked to the HEMRL through motors, propellants or explosives.”
It is the propulsion system that makes a missile either a tactical one or a strategic one, such as an intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) or an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM). The propulsion systems for strategic missiles and K-15 missiles were developed by the DRDO’s largest laboratory.
The HEMRL has made important contributions to the development of India’s ballistic missile defence shield, the Advanced Air Defence System (AADS). In this system, an incoming “enemy” ballistic missile is knocked out in mid-flight by the DRDO’s interceptor missile. Three tests of such interceptor missile have been successful in a row.
Developing motors and propellants for missiles is quite different from making them for civilian launch vehicles. While launch vehicles for civilian applications can afford to have a slow lift-off, the DRDO’s missiles should accelerate fast. While the propellants on board civilian launch vehicles have a burn rate of 8 mm per second, the HEMRL-developed propellants have a burn-rate of 40 mm per second.
While rockets for civilian applications are launched in normal temperatures, DRDO-developed missiles function effectively at -40°0 Celsius at Siachen or +50°0 C in the deserts of Rajasthan. “So the propellants need a special casting,” said Subhananda Rao.
“We need to ensure 10 to 15 years of life for the missiles. We make motors with a high margin of safety and the capability for quick reaction too. They are high-acceleration motors,” he added. The DRDO’s missiles should withstand rigours and vibrations because they are moved from place to place. “So this class of missile motors have to be extremely robust and operate at extreme temperatures,” explained Bhattacharya.
For the canister-launched Shourya missile, the HEMRL has developed a generator that produces gas to push it out of the canister. The U.S., Russia and India are the only countries to develop the total technology needed for the gas generators.
The HEMRL was using RDX or HMX for missile warheads. It has now shifted entirely to HMX. It has developed the HMX composition for Akash and Nag. The laboratory had developed advanced demolition charges for use by the Army, Asthana said. These charges have civil applications, too. The laboratory has provided explosive cords to cut open the canopy of the Light Combat Aircraft, Tejas, to enable the pilot to eject in an emergency.
The HEMRL has embarked on the modernisation of gun ammunition. Its thrust is the modular charge system for gun propellants, which has an edge over the charge housed in cloth bags. The laboratory is mastering the technology of low-vulnerability (LOVA) propellants for gun ammunition. Amarjit Singh, Associate Director, said it had developed enhanced-energy LOVA propellants. This made them safer to use.
It has also developed the technology for making combustible cartridge cases (CCC) for gun ammunition. The CCCs are produced in partnership with a private industry. “The indigenous CCC technology has not only replaced costly imported brass cartridge cases, saving foreign exchange, but reduced logistic problems,” said Amarjit Singh.
The laboratory has synthesised CL-20. “It is a wonderful chemical. It can change the scenario of conventional explosives. We have given the licence to a private industry to produce it,” said Subhananda Rao. The HEMRL has developed FOX-7 (Field Ordnance Explosive) and also amorphous boron. “This [amorphous boron] is one of the greatest things to be produced here,” said Bhattacharya. The technology for developing amorphous boron was known only to a few countries.
A nanotechnology centre is coming up on the 340-hectare HEMRL campus. The laboratory has set up an Advanced Research Centre in High Energy Materials, funded by the DRDO, on the University of Hyderabad campus.
It has embarked on an ambitious programme in the area of insensitive explosives to overcome the problem of explosion by unplanned stimuli. “It will be of great advantage from the logistics point of view,” said Manish Bharadwaj.
EXPLOSIVE REACTOR ARMOUR
A visible success of the HEMRL is in developing the explosive reactor armour (ERA) for battle tanks. The ERA is a novel concept wherein the explosive reaction disrupts and defeats even the latest anti-tank missiles. A. Appa Rao, Associate Director, explained: “While the normal armour is passive, the ERA will react to the penetration of the incoming missile with the help of explosives sandwiched between armour plates. The explosives generate sufficient energy to destroy the incoming missile. The missile does not penetrate the entire thickness of the armour. The missile is deflected by an explosive force.”
More than 600 T-72 (CI Ajeya) tanks of the Army have been refurbished with the ERA. “We have developed a hybrid armour that can take care of tandem warheads and kinetic energy projectiles,” Appa Rao said.
A big facility of the HEMRL is coming up at Nashik. It will process propellants for large-sized case-bonded rocket motors. The facility, with more than 80 technical buildings and critical equipment, will process 100 tonnes of propellants a year. The processing will involve a new technology called pressure casting, which will improve the mechanical properties and energy of the propellants.
“The plant will meet the futuristic requirements of our missile programme,” said Subhananda Rao.
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Here is a video of presentation made by Dr. VK Saraswat on Indian missiles and the future plans for the missiles. Recommended watch. He talks about a lot of new stuff - MIRVs, Multi Kill Vehicles, Cruise Missile Defense, Ballistic Missile Defense etc.
http://www.24framesdigital.com/aeroindia2009/110209/auditorium_a/dr_v_k_saraswat.html
http://www.24framesdigital.com/aeroindia2009/110209/auditorium_a/dr_v_k_saraswat.html
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