New Delhi, May 8 (NVI): In a major boost to India’s indigenous defence programme, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully carried out the maiden flight-trial of the Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon off the Odisha coast on May 7.
An official statement issued by the Ministry of Defence, TARA is India’s first indigenous glide weapon system designed to convert conventional unguided warheads into precision-guided weapons capable of accurately striking ground-based targets from extended ranges.
Developed by DRDO’s Research Centre Imarat along with other DRDO laboratories, the modular range extension kit is aimed at enhancing the lethality, accuracy and operational flexibility of low-cost aerial weapons.
Officials said the system uses state-of-the-art low-cost guidance and navigation technologies, marking a significant milestone in India’s efforts to strengthen self-reliance in advanced weapon systems under the indigenous defence manufacturing push.
The development programme has been executed in collaboration with Development-cum-Production Partners (DcPP) and several Indian defence industries, which have already commenced production activities linked to the system.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, the IAF and industry partners for the successful maiden trial, describing the achievement as a “significant development” towards enhancing India’s indigenous defence capabilities.
Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and DRDO Chairman Samir V Kamat also congratulated the teams associated with the successful test.(NVI)
