New Delhi, 16 July

Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan on Wednesday warned that India must urgently modernise its defence systems, stating that “today’s warfare has to be fought with tomorrow’s technology.”

Speaking at a workshop on the indigenisation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS) at the Manekshaw Centre, the CDS highlighted the strategic importance of developing homegrown drone technologies. He cautioned that relying on foreign technologies not only weakens India’s defence preparedness but also compromises operational surprise.

“Recent global conflicts have shown how drones can disproportionately shift tactical balance,” General Chauhan said. “Asymmetric drone warfare is making large platforms vulnerable, forcing militaries to rethink their doctrines and develop adaptive responses.”

Referencing Operation Sindoor, India’s counter-offensive following the Pahalgam terror attack, he noted that while Pakistan deployed loiter munitions and unarmed drones on 10 May, none caused damage. “Most were neutralised through kinetic and non-kinetic means, and some were recovered nearly intact,” he said, underlining the growing effectiveness of India's C-UAS capabilities.

He stressed that Operation Sindoor demonstrated the necessity of having systems “built for our terrain and needs”. Imported niche technologies, he said, limit scalability, reduce availability of critical spares, and make Indian tactics predictable to adversaries.

Gen Chauhan cautioned that foreign weapons, sensors and their capabilities are known to all, and adversaries can "predict our tactics and doctrinal concepts" based on the capabilities of these systems.

“If developed indigenously, we maintain operational surprise, at least in initial encounters,” he added.

In his message to the workshop, General Chauhan called self-reliance in UAV and C-UAS technologies a “strategic imperative” that empowers India to safeguard its interests and shape its own future.