Defence Technology, Research and Development, and Defence Production
This domain tests the defence innovation ecosystem: who designs, who produces, how acquisition works, and what indigenisation means. Expect questions on DRDO laboratories, public-sector undertakings, missiles and platforms, and export policy.
Core institutions
- DRDO, established in 1958, is the defence research agency. Its laboratories include DRDL and RCI (Hyderabad), ADE, LRDE and CABS (Bengaluru), NSTL (Visakhapatnam) and HEMRL (Pune).
- HAL, BEL, BDL, BEML, Mazagon Dock, GRSE, Cochin Shipyard and Goa Shipyard are key defence public-sector undertakings.
- The Ordnance Factory Board was replaced in 2021 by seven defence public-sector undertakings, including Munitions India and Advanced Weapons and Equipment India.
- DAP 2020 governs acquisition; iDEX supports startups; positive indigenisation lists restrict imports of specified items.
- Major programmes include Tejas, Arjun, Akash, Nag, Pinaka, Agni, Prithvi, BrahMos, INS Arihant, Dhruv and Netra AEW&CS.
Worked example
A question asks which agency would lead design of an indigenous airborne early warning system. Reasoning: DRDO's Centre for Airborne Systems in Bengaluru leads the mission system and integration, with HAL and other agencies providing platform support. Production and sustainment involve HAL and partner firms. The Ordnance Factory Board is irrelevant because it produced ammunition and land systems, not aircraft.
Traps that cost marks
- Confusing DRDO, which researches and develops, with PSUs that produce.
- Believing the Ordnance Factory Board still exists.
- Mixing missile ranges or assigning BrahMos to DRDO alone; it is a joint venture with a Russian partner.
- Ignoring the difference between indigenisation, offsets and export promotion.