Exercise Bharat Shakti showed India’s indigenous military capability, jointness in defence forces: Indian Army

The integrated tri-services exercise Bharat Shakti displayed the indigenous defence capability of the armed forces along with the integration and jointness that are being achieved in various aspects like communications, training, inter-operability and logistics by the three defence forces.

Exercise Bharat Shakti, a tri-service fire and manoeuvre exercise, was organised under the aegis of the Indian Army on March 12 in Pokharan.

The synergized demonstration of indigenous defence capabilities is a testimony to its commitment towards modernization through indigenization.

For this live fire demonstration, the efforts by the Indian Army, being the lead service, are visible, starting with meticulous planning in utilising the available resources in Pokaran for integrated firing, which can be attributed to battle space management akin to actual operations. Synergy in ISR, firepower and communications was evident during the conduct, Army officials said.

Airspace management in coordination with the Air Force is also a critical requirement in the battle where various air assets of the Army and Air Force will be using the airspace simultaneously, which needs clear demarcation of boundaries, identification drills and foolproof communication systems.

Coordinating actual fire and manoeuvre drills by various arms & services is an essential requirement of such large-scale exercises, which gives first-hand experience in dealing with such issues in actual battles. All these activities also include the move of a large number of equipment and weapon pieces for firing and display, which involves coordination with the other two services at the highest level.

While efforts are in place and extensive plans are being made to orchestrate integration and bring jointness amongst the services, Bharat Shakti epitomises these efforts and highlights the contributions of the Army towards achieving the much-awaited integration.

While the firing was awe-inspiring, the static display of various equipment and weapons in the display arena gave a holistic view of the indigenous platforms of the Armed Forces. Equipment & weapons on display include various drones and counter-drone systems, simulators, and communication systems, including software-defined radio (SDR), radars, LCH Prachand, ALH, Akash Missile Systems, Jammers and electronic warfare systems from all three services.

From the Army, Multi-Mode Hand Grenade (MMHG), Laser Dazzler, Thermal Imager Integrated Observation Equipment (TIIOE) and Night Sights, Canister Launched Anti Armour Loiter Munition (CALM), Low Power Jammer Systems, Mini RPAs, Aerial Targeting Sys (ATS) ER, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Launched Precision Guided Munition (ULPGM), 3D Printed Bunkers, Operation Theatre on Wheel (11xALS/HMV), Weapon Locating Radar Swathi, TATA Xenon & ALS Medical Ambulance with Critical Care Equipment, NAMIS (Tracked), Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Receiver, Artificial Intelligence Based Satellite Imagery Analysis System, Situational Awareness Module for Army (SAMA) are some of the prominent ones on display.

The live fire and static display have given a strategic message to the adversaries about the combat potential of our armed forces in terms of capability and capacity.

Bharat Shakti also signalled to the world military community to subscribe to the large defence manufacturing potential possessed by India.

Such a high magnitude, first-ever exercise was witnessed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with Army Chief General Manoj Pande and other senior military dignitaries.