Indian Army inducts Nagastra-1, country’s first ‘Kamikaze drone’
New Delhi: In a step towards self-reliance in the defense sector, the Indian Army has inducted Nagastra-1, the country's first indigenously developed loitering munition, on Friday. With 75% of its components sourced locally, the ‘Kamikaze drone’ marks a major milestone in India's defense capabilities.
Nagastra-1, also known as a ‘suicide drone,’ is designed to loiter around a target area and then strike by crashing into the specific target. Combining features of a cruise missile and a combat drone, it can hit targets up to 15 kilometers away with a 1.5 kg warhead and has an autonomous mode range of 30 kilometers. The drone is GPS-enabled and lightweight, allowing a single soldier to carry it across various terrains. Weighing 9 kilograms, the fixed-wing electric Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) has an endurance of 30 minutes.
The drone's unique electric propulsion system ensures it operates with a low acoustic signature, making it virtually undetectable when flying at heights above 200 meters. Developed in collaboration with Z-motion Autonomous Systems Private Ltd, a Bengaluru-based company, the system includes a ground control station, communication controls, payload, and a pneumatic launcher.
Equipped with night-vision cameras, Nagastra-1 can operate effectively in darkness. Although designed to explode on the target, it can be recovered for reuse by aborting the mission mid-air. It also features a parachute recovery system, setting it apart from similar drones used globally. Recent conflicts in regions such as Russia, Ukraine, and Yemen have seen extensive use of drone technologies, highlighting their strategic importance.
Produced by Solar Industries, Nagpur, Nagastra-1 is a notable addition to India's military arsenal. The Army has placed an order for 480 units of the drone. A pre-delivery inspection of Nagastra-1 was conducted from May 21-25, after which 120 units were delivered to the Army ammunition depot at Pulgaon, near Wardha in Maharashtra.
With a hit accuracy of 2 meters, the Indian Army aims to enhance its striking capabilities against enemy training camps and launch pads across the borders, as well as effectively neutralize infiltrators.
#WATCH | The first indigenous Loitering Munition, Nagastra–1, developed by Solar Industries, Nagpur, has been delivered to the Indian Army
— ANI (@ANI) June 14, 2024
Nagastra -1, in a 'kamikaze mode' can neutralize any hostile threat with GPS-enabled precision strike with an accuracy of 2m. The… pic.twitter.com/kWeehBMGvW
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'Rear-guard action': BJP over Mamata accepting sports minister's resignation after Messi event
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP on Tuesday alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's accepting Aroop Biswas' resignation as the state sports minister is nothing but a "rear-guard action" to douse public anger over the mismanagement of football icon Lionel Messi's event last week.
BJP co-in-charge for West Bengal Amit Malviya alleged that this is also an "open confession" that the Messi event fiasco was not accidental but a government-manufactured disaster, borne out of the poor governance of Banerjee, her ministers and the state bureaucracy.
Banerjee on Tuesday accepted Biswas' resignation as the sports minister in the wake of the controversy over the mismanagement of football icon Messi's event last week, a senior leader of the ruling TMC said.
Biswas, who had written to the chief minister seeking to be relieved of his responsibilities as sports minister, will continue as a cabinet minister, retaining charge of the power department.
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Reacting to the development, Malviya said in a post on X, "TMC Sports Minister Aroop Biswas resigns after the Messi fiasco and Mamata Banerjee accepts it in record time."
"Do not mistake this for accountability; this is nothing but a rear-guard action to douse public anger. anger! This is not 'Raj Dharma'," he added.
The BJP leader alleged that the incident was the outcome of "loot" of common people which is "so synonymous" with the TMC.
The incident was also the outcome of the "shameless VIP culture that TMC thrives on and deep-rooted cronyism promoted by Banerjee," he charged.
Malviya further alleged that Biswas' resignation exposes a "collective failure of Mamata Banerjee, her partisan bureaucracy, and her crony cabinet".
"This is a symbolic sacrifice, a political hoax, soon to be buried under layers of bureaucracy, with no justice, no accountability, and no remorse," the BJP leader said, adding, "No resignation will bring back the time lost, the money wasted, or the stolen chance for football lovers to witness Messi in Kolkata."
