Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), ‘Arudhra’ medium-power radar would be commissioned by IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal P V Naik on Friday on the sidelines of three day-long Commander’s Conference of South Western Air Command.
Defence officials said that the state-of-the-art radar is being inducted to strengthen air defence capabilities in the Surashtara-Kutch region as part of radar upgradation, and forms an important component in IAF’s plan to achieve network centric operations.
Officials said that the Gujarat coastline has several economically important installations and the new radar will help in extending their security. India has been upgrading its air-defence capabilities along its frontiers with both China and Pakistan. It has acquired systems such as AWACS and the Aerostat radars to keep an eye on the activities of its adversaries. It is also on a lookout for new age surface-to-air missiles of different ranges to replace its Russian origin OSA-AK and Pechora missiles.