Army to induct new battlefield surveillance system from March to shorten sensor-to-shooter loop | India News
NEW DELHI: The Army will begin inducting a new indigenous battlefield surveillance system (BSS), which integrates the inputs from all ground and aerial sensors and then fuses them to produce a common operational surveillance picture for commanders and staff at different levels, from March onwards.
Developed jointly by the Army and PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL)at a cost of Rs 2,402 crore, the automated BSS under `Project Sanjay’ was flagged off by defence minister Rajnath Singh on Friday.
The BSS, which is equipped with state-of-the-art sensors and cutting-edge analytics, will be inducted into all operational brigades, divisions and corps of the over 11-lakh strong Army in three phases from March to October this year.
“It will integrate inputs from all sensors, process them to confirm their veracity, prevent duplication and then fuse them to provide a common surveillance picture over the secured Army data network and satellite communication network,” an officer said.
“It will enhance battlefield transparency and transform the future battlefield through a centralized web application, which will provide inputs to the regional commands as well as Army headquarters, and the Army’s decision support system,” he added.
The BSS can monitor the vast land borders, prevent intrusions, assess situations with unparalleled accuracy and prove to be a force multiplier in ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) capabilities by shortening the sensor-to-shooter loop.
It is critical in modern-day warfare to quickly use sensors to acquire information about a target and then use that input to guide a weapon system to strike the target.
“The BSS will enable commanders to operate in both conventional and sub-conventional operations in a network-centric environment. Its induction will be a big leap towards data and network-centricity in the Army,” the officer said.
The Army is also setting up multiple integrated battlefield surveillance and intelligence centers, which will get feeds from a wide array of sensors ranging from satellites and drones to radars and troops on the ground, as part of the several “automation, digitization and networking” projects underway in the force, as reported earlier by TOI.
The existing ACCCCS (artillery combat, command, control and communication system) is also undergoing a major upgrade with “migration to defence series maps and utilization of artificial intelligence” under Project Shakti. Project Sanjay will also integrate with the ACCCS to complete the sensor-shooter grid.