Indian state-owned defense and aerospace company Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) has been awarded a contract worth Rs 488 billion ($ 70.64 million) for the production of software radios for the Indian Navy.
The agreement was signed with the Indian Ministry of Defense. It is a key milestone in the country’s plans for domestic mass production of advanced technological SDRs.
The Indian Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has developed and developed the SDR.
The organization has been supported by a number of agencies, including the Center for Advanced Computing Development (CDAC), the Center for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR) and the Indian Navy’s Weapons and Electronics Engineering System (WESEE).
The contract will include the replacement of existing hardware-based legacy communication kits with software-based multiband, multifunction and multifunction / radio stations.
This is to ensure secure communication for improved information exchange and awareness.
SDRs have internal waveforms capable of providing a wide range of frequency and enhancing capabilities.
Sputnik International announced in August last year that the military radio communications system would enable the network of naval battlefields in motion. The radios are also expected to improve the operational capabilities of the fleet.
DRDO has been working on the project for integrated development of software-defined fleet radio (INDESDR) for eight years.
After the development of the radio stations, the organization conducted user tests for five different SDRs.
In November 2017, the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by then-Defense Minister Nirmala Sitaraman, approved the award of more than 260 SDRs.
Earlier this year, BEL reached technical cooperation agreement (TCA) with Israeli Elbit helmet display system (HMDS).
Under this agreement, the company will manufacture HMDS / Helmet Guidance System (HPS) Version 02 in India under license.
These systems are planned to be integrated into the Indian Navy and other rotating platforms of the Armed Forces.