Drones, like the ones that hit the Jammu airfield, injuring two Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel, can be detected on time. And they can shot down. This is what Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria said today. 

Jammu didn’t have the drone detection and killer systems; it did not have “significant assets,” like fighters, transport planes and Airborne Warning systems either. And the drones were released from quite close, making detection more difficult. But with drone detectors and destroyers in place, many of them made in India, the armed forces can breathe easy. The Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict was a warning. And now, large numbers of anti-drone systems will be in place very shortly. 

The question remains: where are the drones coming from? Who handled them? What was the objective? Investigations are going on and the chief of defence staff, General Bipin Rawat, said a drone investigation could be the equivalent of a cease-fire violation. Why were the drones sent? To “showcase” a capability? Or to destroy assets? If it is the latter, India could have the right to retaliate. But who had sent the drones? The Pakistan military of the terror groups. Importantly, it’s about drones today; it could be something else tomorrow.

The army chief, General MM Naravane, has made his position clear. Yes, there have been drone attacks, but the armed forces were dealing with it.