Women have made substantial strides in defence research being spearheaded by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), with three women directors general, three others as directors of major defence laboratories, and another three serving as corporate directors at the agency’s headquarters, G. Satheesh Reddy, Chairman of DRDO and Secretary, Department of Defence Research and Development, told the media here on Thursday.
“Many other women [scientists] are heading critical projects, including those dealing with missiles and bombs. The Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory (NPOL) - Kochi too has many woman project directors, while woman scientists of the DRDO also travel on board ships, submarines, and to frontier areas,” he said on the sidelines of the International Women’s Day 2022 celebrations (‘Shakti’) organised here by the DRDO. Outstanding woman defence scientists were honoured at the event hosted by the NPOL. Around 250 woman scientists from across the country attended the event, which saw discussions on how women could contribute to augmenting defence technology and create a better working environment in the research and development field.
Mr. Reddy said the DRDO was working on new technologies, including Helina, an indigenously developed anti-tank guided missile that was tested from high altitude. “Yet another technology is the high-capacity, indigenous, long range 155-mm gun, whose final trial is under way at Pokhran. The DRDO is trying to be the world leader in defence technologies. Similarly, Rustom-2 [the indigenous unmanned aerial vehicle] is going through the final trials. We will be able to see whether it is meeting all requirements, by May. We are constantly assessing emerging technologies globally,” he added.
