Bhopal: Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said that unconventional methods of warfare have posed a big challenge to the country.
Addressing officers in the Army War College (AWC) in more than two centuries old Mhow cantonment in Indore district in Madhya Pradesh, Mr Singh said that the Indian army should remain well-trained and well-equipped in this challenging situation.
“Unconventional methods of warfare such as information warfare, artificial intelligence (AI) based warfare, proxy warfare, electro-magnetic warfare, space warfare, and cyber-attacks are now posing a big challenge to us.
Dominance of a few countries in the electronic-chips market and monopoly on rare earth minerals are also a cause of concern for us. This apart, hybrid warfare and grey-zone warfare have added a new dimension to the challenge”, he said.
He stressed the need for the Indian military to be well-trained and equipped to meet such challenges and lauded Mhow college for its contribution towards this.
“Mastering frontier technologies is the need of the hour in the constantly evolving times. We are equipping our military with modern weapons constantly. We are not only meeting the needs of our military, but also exporting the equipment to other countries”, he added.
Mr Singh said that India’s military defence exports have crossed a record Rs 21,000 crore from Rs 2,000 crore a decade ago.
“A target has been set to achieve defence exports of Rs 50,000 crore by 2029”, he said.
The Union minister said that the Modi government is committed to strengthening integration and jointness of our three services.
“In the times to come, the armed forces will be able to face challenges together in a better and more efficient way”, he said.
He said that some officers will work as military attaches in future, and they should strive to secure national interest at the global level.
Chief of the Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedy and other senior officers were present on the occasion.
Earlier in the day, Mr Singh and General Dwivedy offered prayers at the famous Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.