VSHORAD Missile System: Very Short-Range Air Defence System | Developed by DRDO (UPSC)

India keeps getting trouble from the Northern region, China from the North East side, and Pakistan from the Western side. India has to bear both countries. Further, the region here is a mountain region, so India has taken a big step to deal with both of them. India is now going to deploy VSHORAD Missile System in these regions, its full form is the Very Short Range Air Defence System.

The Indian government has given approval to various defense procurements. But this missile system is being discussed a lot in the world. In the article, we will try to know in detail what DRDO has made and what was being talked about before with Russia, you will get to know a lot.

Overview of VSHORAD Missile System

The Defense Acquisition Council(DAC) is headed by the Defense Minister, Rajnath Singh, who has recently approved a lot of defense procurement and is said to have procured Rs. 4276 crores of Army and Navy weapons. Further,  Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) has given an accord to the Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for the procurement of the VSHORAD Missile System.

What is Acceptance of Necessity(AoN)?

The Acceptance of Necessity(AoN) is the first step of the equation process and establishes that the military has an urgent need for the equipment. 

Background of VSHORAD Missile System

India has been in talks with Russia since 2018 for an air defense missile system. Earlier, India was using Russia’s Igla-M system and wanted to replace it with Igla-S.

Igla-S is a Man-Portable System that can be carried from one place to another and works in very short ranges of 20-25 km. If you want to destroy an aircraft or a missile, then this system is very useful, especially in mountain regions, a single soldier can carry this missile system anywhere.

Before, India wanted to buy Igla-S from Russia, but after Covid-19 there was talk of Self-Reliant India and due to this India will now acquire a Very Short Range Air Defence System(VSHORAD).

In September 2022, DRDO conducted two successful tests of the VSHORAD Missile system in Chandipur,  Odisha.

Missile	Very Short Range Air Defence System(VSHORAD)
Expected Range	20-25 KM
Developed by	DRDO
Type	Man-portable Surface to Air

Features of the VSHORAD Missile System

• Man Portable:
  • The Very Short Range Air Defence System is a Man-portable Air Defence System(MANPAD). It can be easily carried from one place to another with the help of only one shoulder.
• VSHORAD was Designed & Developed by:
  • VSHORAD Missile System was designed and developed by DRDO’s Research Centre Imarat(RCI), Hyderabad in collaboration with other DRDO Laboratories and Indian industry partners.
• Technology Used:
  • It is propelled by Dual Thrust Solid Motor that incorporated many novel technologies. As the reaction control system is done, the installed electronic system has been kept in miniature form.
• Range of VSHORAD Missile System:
  • DRDO has not yet revealed the range of the missile system, but according to estimates, its range will be 20-25 kilometers.

Conclusion

DRDO has not entirely revealed the VSHORAD system but the army officer believes that this missile system will give a lot of strength to the army of India. When it comes to man-portable air defense systems, there was a critical gap in the Army’s inventory, especially for Eastern and Northern borders. 

At present, it is in its first stage but in the next 3-4 years, when this system will be deployed in the Indian Army then it will make India very strong.

Thank You!

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