Robots to take on terrorism

NEW DELHI: Indigenously built robots, capable of delivering ammunition at intended locations, will soon be used by the Army in its fight against terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.

An army proposal, projecting a requirement of 544 robots, has been approved by the defence ministry, paving the way for the indigenous development of such machines, army officials said.

The army’s proposal for adopting robotic security and surveillance stresses that the footprint of terror has expanded from jungles and rural areas to urban sectors, necessitating the induction of the systems in the force.

“The way the situation is evolving (in Jammu and Kashmir), it may just be a matter of time when security forces as a whole, and Rashtriya Rifles (RR) in particular, will be facing the threat in built-up and super built-up areas,” the army said, making a strong case for robotic platforms.

“These robotic surveillance platforms can be extensively used by the Rashtriya Rifles forces… for gathering real-time input prior to manual insertion,” says an army note.

The “lightweight and rugged” robots will consist of several subsystems such as surveillance cameras and transmission systems with a range of 200 metres. The army’s requirements state that the robots should be able to “deliver suitable ammunition… e.g. stun grenade.”

The approval for the robotic surveillance platform has been granted under the ‘Make’ category of acquisition in the Defence Procurement Procedure 2016 that lays down that only Indian vendors are eligible for the projects.