Is it time for India's Rocket Force?

Abstract

The future battlefield is likely to be largely contactless where unmanned warfare, stand-off weapons, and cyber and clandestine operations will take precedence over tank vs. tank or hand-to-hand combat. Towards this effort, all major countries are creating assets and organizations to consolidate their space assets, galvanize capabilities in the cyber domain, provide a new edge to their special forces, and fine-tune their hybrid warfare options. However, an equally important focus has been on boosting missile inventories and redefining its employment philosophy. Over the years there has been an alarming proliferation of missiles all across the globe, as the technology to build them has become increasingly prosaic; today 31 countries are known to be in possession of ballistic missiles. It is not without a reason that Ian Williams, a fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) feels that “… we are entering an era of missile renaissance.” The missiles, today, are being increasingly envisioned for conventional use, leading to a serious rethinking of their employment.