The success of Mission Divyastra, the first flight test of the indigenously developed Agni-5 missile with Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) technology, has brought glory to the National Institute of Technology, Calicut (NIT-C) in form of an alumna who was part of the team of scientists that developed the ballistic missile.
Usha Verma, Associate Director in the Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, played a pivotal role in the development of advanced variants of Agni missiles. She is an alumna of the 1991 batch of Electronics and Communication Engineering at the Regional Engineering College, Calicut (later elevated as NIT-C).
Ms. Verma started her career in the DRDO with the prestigious Air Defence Programme, where she led the development of the first indigenous Ka-Band Active Radar Missile Seeker for mid-air neutralisation of incoming ballistic missiles. Later in 2014, she was posted to the Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL) as Technology Director of Strategic System Electronics Group to focus on thrust areas that are important for national security in the Agni missile systems. She has added advanced avionics features in the latest variants of Agni missiles such as Agni Prime, Agni-V Mk II, and now in Divyastra.
“Getting the right opportunity at the right time is very important. I am fortunate that the REC has given me a great foundation, and the DRDO has given me the opportunity and responsibility to work on these challenging projects,” said Ms. Verma, who is also an active member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a voluntary institution. Her research is mainly focused on the indigenisation of critical technologies to help India achieve self-reliance in defence technology.
“These projects are very complex in nature and today we have reached an important milestone of having MIRV capability, which is the culmination of the efforts of thousands of scientists and other supporting staff of DRDO,” said Ms. Verma.
