New Delhi: In another major boost to the country’s military might, amid the tense situation with Pakistan, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh virtually inaugurated the BrahMos Super Sonic Missile Production Unit at Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor in Lucknow this afternoon.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who attended the event, launched a blistering attack on Pakistan.
“You must have seen a glimpse of the BrahMos missile during Operation Sindoor. If you didn’t, then just ask the people of Pakistan about the power of the BrahMos missile,” Adityanath said in his address.
He further reiterated India’s stance on terrorism, saying that ‘any act of terrorism’ will be considered an ‘act of war.’
Features of facility
The facility built at a cost of Rs. 300 crore, is designed to manufacture 80 to 100 missiles annually. The BrahMos missiles, which has a range of 290 to 400 km and a top speed of Mach 2.8, is developed by BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture between India and Russia. The missile can be launched from land, sea, or air and follows a “fire and forget” guidance system.
Next-Gen BrahMos
The missiles will be manufactured in addition to 100 to 150 next-generation BrahMos missiles to be manufactured each year. The next-generation missiles will be ready and delivered within one year. So far, fighter jets like the Sukhoi can carry only one BrahMos missile. However, they will now be able to carry up to three next-generation BrahMos missiles.
The next-generation BrahMos missile will have a strike range of over 300 kilometres and weigh 1,290 kilograms, compared to the current BrahMos missile, which weighs 2,900 kilograms.
The production unit was announced as part of the Defence Industrial Corridor initiative launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 2018 Global Investors’ Summit and the foundation stone was laid in 2021.
BrahMos missiles are a joint development by India’s DRDO and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya and are considered a key component of India’s defence system.
Along with the manufacturing unit, the BrahMos Aerospace Integration and Testing Facility was also inaugurated. This facility will handle the assembly and testing of the missiles, according to an official statement.
The Titanium and Super Alloys Materials Plant (Strategic Materials Technology Complex) was launched at the same event. It will produce materials used in aerospace and defence manufacturing.
Additionally, the foundation stone for the Defence Testing Infrastructure System (DTIS) was laid. DTIS will be used for testing and certifying defence products.
The BrahMos production unit, built over 80 hectares of land provided free by the Uttar Pradesh Government, was completed in three-and-a-half years.
The UP Defence Industrial Corridor has six nodes — Lucknow, Kanpur, Aligarh, Agra, Jhansi and Chitrakoot — and aims to attract major defence investments. Uttar Pradesh is the second State after Tamil Nadu to establish such a corridor, the statement said.
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