New Delhi: The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is planning to acquire loitering munitions, or self-destructing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that combine drone surveillance features with a guided missile strike capabilities.
This came to be known through a document circulated on Monday seeking information by the end of November from vendors about supplies.
Hindustan Times claims to have seen a copy of the document.
Loitering munitions, also known as kamikaze drones, have reshaped modern warfare due to their precision.
The kamikaze drones must carry two high-explosive warheads weighing at least 1.5 kg, the document, titled Quality Requirements (QRs) and Trial Directives, said. They must have a range of at least 15 km and an endurance of at least 30 minutes while carrying the payload, it added.
The role will be “to carry out one-way missions against designated objectives, using a remotely operated aerial vehicle with a killing/impact radius of 10 metres.”
The document directed submission of information by November 25 on kamikaze drones matching the force’s specific requirement.
CRPF units are deployed both in is deployed in Jammu and Kashmir, where insurgency has waned significantly, and in ethnic violence-hit Manipur.
Two battalions of the Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA), the CRPF’s elite specialised unit trained in guerrilla tactics, intelligence gathering, and jungle warfare, which were deployed in anti-Maoist operations since its inception in 2008, were moved out for the first time and deployed in Manipur.
In the state, militant outfits have been taking advantage of the hilly terrain and using drones against security forces. They have also deployed country-made rocket launchers with up to a 10-15 km range while hiding in the jungles.
The two CoBRA battalions were rushed to Manipur within two months of Union home minister Amit Shah declaring India Naxalite-free on March 31 after all top Maoist leaders surrendered, were arrested, or killed. This coincided with escalating ethnic violence in Manipur, which has left around 370 dead and 66,000 displaced since 2023.
CoBRA has been involved in almost every major anti-insurgency operation in Manipur over the last six months, and early results have been positive, officials said.
“CoBRA teams have been successfully reoriented in Manipur. When a militant camp [Sinai] was to be taken over last month, CoBRA was the obvious choice of force to use. CoBRA has been part of all major arms seizures in Manipur since May, as well as the arrest of insurgents in recent killings,” one of them said.
Manipur has requested two more battalions of the anti-insurgency force, they said. “One battalion [around 1,000 personnel] should come soon. In the last six months …CoBRA commandos [were sent] to every place where the conflict has escalated, and they delivered good results,” another official said.
Regular Central Armed Police Forces will remain posted in the formerly Left Wing Extremism-hit areas, while the specialised unit moves to Manipur and Jammu and Kashmir.
“The deployment of a third CoBRA battalion in Manipur will happen very soon, while in Jammu and Kashmir, it may happen in the coming years,” the official said.