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The Indian Army has floated a ₹30,000 crore tender with BEL to buy five to six regiments of the Anant Shastra air defence system. The DRDO-made missile shield will help guard India’s borders with Pakistan and China.
The Anant Shastra is a new Indian missile system that can quickly shoot down enemy aircraft and drones to protect our borders.
The deets: once cleared, these regiments will be deployed along the western and northern borders, complementing existing missile systems like Akash and MRSAM.
Each Anant Shastra regiment will come with launchers, radars, and command units mounted on 8×8 trucks, making it highly mobile for border zones. The missile itself is 4.4 metres long, carries a 32 kg warhead, and can engage targets up to 30 km away.
The system can lock onto and hit six targets at once, even under electronic jamming, giving the Army a modern shield against drones, aircraft, and missiles.
Why it matters: This deal is a win for self-reliance in defence. Instead of depending on imported missile systems, India is deploying homegrown technology built by DRDO and BEL. It keeps billions of rupees within the country, builds local expertise, and gives the Army weapons designed for India’s own battle conditions.
Zoom out: India today runs one of the world’s largest defence forces, backed by a mix of imported and indigenous systems. The arsenal spans everything from S-400s and Rafales to homegrown Tejas jets, Akash missiles, and Pinaka rockets.
Currently, the aim is clear & it is to cut import dependence, modernise the armed forces, and be ready to counter enemy with gear that’s made in India for India.
