To thwart cyber attacks and ensure security of networks, the Defence Research and Development Organisation is developing its own operating system, said V.K. Saraswat, its Director-General.
The Indian operating system will take a couple of more years to become operational. About 150 engineers and scientists of the defence organisation and academic institutions have been working for the past year-and-a-half on the project, he said on the sidelines of an international conference on navigation and communication here today. “The system will ensure that we are independent of what's happening outside and ensure the safety of our own networks,” he said.
Earlier, in a special address at the two-day conference, he said cyber security and network security have become important in view of the increasing number of attacks and threats. India is short on hardware systems in communication, he said.
The Indian industry has to chip in, in a big way to reduce foreign dependence. While the defence organisation has a large development programme, the fabrication and manufacture of key components and systems has to happen in the private domestic sector, Saraswat, scientific adviser to the Raksha Mantri said.
There is a need to develop cost-effective navigational and communication systems, said Avinash Chander, Chief Controller, R&D (Missiles and Strategic systems) of the DRDO. In his inaugural address, he said the indigenous regional satellite navigation system being put in place will open up a range of applications and help the domestic industry.
The defence organisation is upgrading its existing foundries to increase the production of important inertial sensors that play an important role in the navigation and communications fields. From vehicle tracking to detecting mines, to studying plate movements and missiles, the applications of navigation are growing, Avinash Chander said.
The conference is being organised by the DRDO and the Research and Training Unit for Navigational Electronics (NERTU), Osmania University.