Indian Army to use jammers to protect forward bases from drone attacks
The Army is procuring jammers in large
numbers, and expanding the range of the existing ones to protect large military bases in forward areas from drone attacks, a senior defence official has said. Also with ceasefire holding along the Line of Control (LoC), both India and Pakistan are using the peace to upgrade their defences on the border, officials said.
“We were cognisant of the threat from drones for some time. To cover forward bases, we are getting bigger jammers, including from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and an Indian company in Hyderabad,” one official said. “We are working to expand the range of our jammers while also importing additional ones.”
Stating that several measures were being put in place, officials said. To begin with, the sentries posted along the installations were more alert now and on the lookout for possible presence of drones. “Drone and quadcopter threat is now a reality,” a second official noted.
There have been several instances in the last couple of years where quadcopters were used to drop drugs, arms and ammunition from across the border in Jammu and Punjab. However, the June 27 attack on Jammu air base is the first instance where small drones were used to drop explosives.