Defence technology — missiles, DRDO & indigenous systems
Key facts
- Constitutional basis rests on Article 246 and Union List Entries 1, 2, 5, 7, 10, 14 and 21.
- Mission Divyastra on 11 March 2024 tested indigenous Agni-5 with multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle technology.
- DAP 2020 governs capital acquisition; indigenous content and positive indigenisation lists support domestic sourcing.
Key Points at a Glance
- 1
Defence technology is applied science for military capability; UPSC tests mechanism, agency, platform and status, not classified details.
- 2
Constitutional basis rests on Article 246 and Union List Entries 1, 2, 5, 7, 10, 14 and 21.
- 3
DRDO is MoD's R&D wing; a successful test is not the same as user acceptance, production or induction.
- 4
Ballistic missiles follow a powered boost and ballistic path; cruise missiles are powered for most of flight.
- 5
IGMDP is linked with Prithvi, Agni, Akash, Nag and Trishul, but their present roles differ.
- 6
Mission Divyastra on 11 March 2024 tested indigenous Agni-5 with multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle technology.
- 7
DAP 2020 governs capital acquisition; indigenous content and positive indigenisation lists support domestic sourcing.
- 8
SCOMET and the WMD Act regulate sensitive dual-use, munitions and delivery-system exports; export is not automatic.
- 9
Recent IADWS, BMD, Akash-NG, VLSRSAM and RudraM tests show networked, layered and platform-specific capability development.
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Defence technology map and legal basis
- Core definition: defence technology is the applied use of science, engineering, electronics, materials, propulsion, software, sensors and manufacturing to create military capability. In Prelims, it covers missiles, air-defence systems, radars, sonars, drones, electronic warfare, secure communication, armoured platforms, naval systems, cyber tools and technologies with civilian spillover.
- Why it is science-tech, not only security: UPSC often asks the working principle behind a system. A missile question may turn on propulsion, guidance, radar, re-entry heating, seeker type, launch platform or payload. A DRDO question may test how research, user trials, production agencies and procurement procedures connect.
- Constitutional location: defence is a Union subject. Article 53 vests executive power of the Union in the President, exercised according to the Constitution. Article 73 extends Union executive power to matters on which Parliament can legislate. Article 246 with the Seventh Schedule gives Parliament competence over Union List subjects.
- Key Union List entries: Entry 1 covers defence of India and preparation for defence; Entry 2 covers naval, military and air forces; Entry 4 covers cantonments; Entry 5 covers arms, firearms, ammunition and explosives; Entry 7 covers industries declared by Parliament necessary for defence or war; Entry 10 covers foreign affairs; Entry 14 covers treaties and agreements; Entry 21 covers piracy and crimes on the high seas and in the air.
- Statutory and policy frame: the Defence Acquisition Procedure, 2020 governs capital acquisitions; the Defence Procurement Manual, 2025 governs revenue procurement; the Industries Development and Regulation Act, 1951 and Arms Act, 1959 matter for licensing; the WMD Act, 2005 and its 2022 amendment support non-proliferation controls; the Foreign Trade Policy, 2023 and SCOMET list control sensitive exports.
- Secrecy and accountability balance: defence technology sits between national security, public money, industrial policy and export control. Parliament approves grants and committees examine expenditure, but classified design details and operational deployment remain restricted.
- Prelims boundary: focus on publicly available facts: programme names, year, agency, broad purpose, platform, legal basis and scientific mechanism. Avoid assuming classified range, payload or deployment doctrine beyond official statements.
- Procurement case-law lens: defence technology purchases are still government contracts. Tata Cellular v. Union of India, 1994 remains the standard administrative-law reminder that courts review the decision-making process for illegality, irrationality and procedural impropriety, but normally do not substitute their technical or commercial preference for that of the authority.
- Rafale litigation caution: Manohar Lal Sharma v. Narendra Damodardas Modi, 2018, with review dismissed in 2019, shows judicial restraint in sensitive defence procurement when the court does not find grounds for a court-monitored probe. For this topic, use it only as a procurement-accountability reference, not as a missile or DRDO technology case.
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1MCQConsider the following statements about Indian defence technology: 1. A successful DRDO developmental flight test is the same as induction into service. 2. A surface-to-air missile is classified by its launch point and target category. 3. Defence is located mainly in the Union List under the Seventh Schedule. Which statements are correct?
Explanation
Statement 1 is wrong because testing, user evaluation, contract and induction are separate stages. Statements 2 and 3 are correct.
~50 words · 1 marks