Following successful trials, RUDRAM will be forwarded for production in a collaboration effort by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL).
Updating and Upgrading Military Capabilities
For years, the Indian military has been undergoing a rebranding effort, recently gaining traction under Prime Minster Narendra Modi’s leadership, including the conception of the RUDRAM missile family.
The arrival of this indigenous NGARM is impeccable considering how India is having challenges with its neighbors China, who’s been so adamant about claiming the northern Himalayan borders, and the brewing tension with Pakistan in its eastern borders.
With RUDRAM, India now has a reliable defense system to protect its air space and strengthen its air dominance tactical capability in case the worst-case scenario happens without having to 100 percent rely on other great nations such as the United States and Russia.
India’s defense ministry first introduced RUDRAM to the world in October 2020, following its successful testing using a Sukhoi-30 combat jet conducted on Abdul Kalam Island (formerly Wheeler Island) just off the coast of Odisha. Accordingly, the NGARM struck its radiation target reportedly with “pinpoint accuracy,” a promising result for its armed forces.
RUDRAM-1 comes with its own challenges, mainly how it should be carried and launched, requiring “complex and sensitive fighter aircraft,” the Financial Express reported. The difficulty in integrating this missile with an aircraft is further dragged by the fact that the Indian government’s plan to upgrade the Su-30 fighter fleet has been put on hold due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
India test-fires 10 missiles in 35 days.
Just 2 days ago, DRDO successfully tested the new-generation anti-radiation missile RUDRAM.
And now, India is preparing to test-fire its Nirbhay subsonic cruise missile.
— Anshul Saxena (@AskAnshul) October 12, 2020
India’s New Generation Anti-Radiation Missile (NGARM), called the Rudram-1, has just been test-fired from a Su-30 MKI over the Bay of Bengal. Details awaited. (File image) pic.twitter.com/7NdKpeZlpt
— Livefist (@livefist) October 9, 2020
India successfully testfired ‘Rudram’ Anti-Radiation Missile from a Sukhoi-30 fighter aircraft off east coast.
With this DRDO developed missile, India establishes indigenous capability to develop long-range air-launched anti-radiation missiles for neutralizing enemy targets. pic.twitter.com/oeygAmZY9V
— ANI (@ANI) October 9, 2020
The project first began pitched in April 2012 and was officially approved for further development in December 2012 with a budget of ₹317.2 crores (roughly $73.3 million in 2022).
The RUDRAM-1, inspired by other ARMs such as the AGM-88E, AARGM, MAR-1, Kh-31, and others, piqued the interest of the Indian Air Force in 2014, despite initial reservations about the missile’s higher weight and shorter range capacity.
Despite some testing delays for RUDRAM-1, the DRDO moved on to the conception and development stage for its two advanced versions, RUDRAM-2 and -3, with the former to enter the trial phase later this year.
RUDRAM-2 will be allegedly designed as an air-lunched ballistic missile, the Financial Express reported. The government has yet to confirm this rumor, though. Likewise, even details about the RUDRAM-3 remain a mystery despite being first reported in 2017.
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In 2017, India almost got into trouble with the US after the former country purchased the S-400 defense system from the latter’s arch nemesis, Russia.
Wanting to upgrade its armed forces and ensure that it would be capable of defending its sovereignty against its growing hostile neighbors, the Indian government ignored the sanction threats of the US and carried on with the purchase. In its defense, Modi’s government justified that acquiring such defense systems was imperative.
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