India is taking its counter-drone strategy beyond military installations, with the government placing orders worth around Rs 155 crore for a news type of mobile anti-drone system designed to protect borders, VVIP movements, public spaces and urban areas.
The orders for Indrajaal Rangers, developed by Indrajaal Autonomous Defense Systems and Sigma Advanced Systems, mark the deployment of what the companies describe as an Anti-Drone Patrol Vehicle-a mobile platform designed to detect, track, identify and counter rogue drones while on the move.
The orders comprise a Rs 145 crore contract awarded to the Indrajaal-Sigma consortium for deployment in India’s border-security environment and a separate around Rs 10 crore order from an urban police force for VVIP protection and urban security.
The development points to a broader shift in India’s counter-unmanned aerial systems (Counter-UAS) requirements: from protecting fixed military and strategic installations to securing areas where the threat itself can move.
From military bases to city streets
Counter-drone systems have traditionally been associated with military bases, strategic installations and other fixed sites. But the emergence of drones carrying out surveillance, smuggling and potentially hostile activities is creating a requirement for systems that can move with security forces. This is where Ranger is positioned.
According to the companies, the platform is designed to provide counter-drone protection along borders, VVIP routes, public events, airports and critical infrastructure. The border-security deployment is intended to strengthen protection against threats including cross-border narcotics and weapons trafficking as well as surveillance drones. The urban deployment, meanwhile, is aimed at VVIP protection and wider urban-security requirements.
The companies described the combined orders as more than two individual Counter-UAS procurements, saying they signal the emergence of a new category of homeland-security infrastructure-the Anti-Drone Patrol Vehicle.
“Counter-UAS must therefore become part of a nation’s everyday security infrastructure,” Kiran Raju Penumacha, Founder and CEO of Indrajaal Autonomous Defense Systems, said. He added that the Indrajaal Ranger was designed to allow security forces to take autonomous counter-drone capability “wherever the threat moves.”
Why mobility matters in the drone fight
The logic behind the mobile platform is straightforward: conventional fixed-site counter-drone systems are less suited to threats that can appear at different locations. A drone carrying narcotics could attempt to cross a border through different points, while a VVIP convoy continuously changes location. Public gatherings may last only a few hours, and critical infrastructure can extend across large geographic areas.
That makes the ability to carry counter-drone protection with security forces increasingly important.
The Ranger is designed to operate while travelling at high speeds, allowing security agencies to deploy protected airspace around moving or temporary missions rather than relying exclusively on permanent installations.
The companies describe it as India’s only ARDTC-approved Anti-Drone Patrol Vehicle.
Three layers of counter-drone protection
The vehicle is powered by the company’s SkyOS platform, which integrates sensors, artificial intelligence, sensor fusion, command and control and multiple countermeasures. Its architecture includes three protection layers.
Retractor is designed to take control of rogue drones, allowing them to be recovered under controlled conditions and potentially subjected to forensic analysis.
Lakshman Rekha creates a virtual protective boundary intended to prevent unauthorised drones from entering secured airspace.
Net Interceptor provides a physical interception capability, designed to capture hostile drones when electronic measures are insufficient.
The combination is intended to provide security agencies with different options depending on the nature of the drone threat. The companies said the Ranger has undergone government evaluations and has been selected by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
A Rs 145 crore border-security deployment
The larger of the two orders is the Rs 145 crore contract awarded to the Indrajaal-Sigma consortium. Its deployment in the border-security environment is significant because it expands counter-drone requirements into an area where drones can be used for more than conventional military surveillance.
The companies specifically cited threats involving narcotics, weapons and surveillance drones. The deployment therefore places Counter-UAS technology alongside conventional border-security infrastructure, rather than limiting it to defence forces operating in conflict zones.
The Rs 10 crore urban-security opportunity
The separate approximately Rs 10 crore urban police order takes the technology into another emerging market: city security. The companies said the deployment will introduce Ranger for VVIP protection and urban security, while also identifying applications around public events, airports and critical infrastructure.
This could potentially widen the market for counter-drone technology beyond the armed forces and towards police and other homeland-security agencies. The distinction is important because the requirement for drone protection does not necessarily disappear outside a battlefield.
A VVIP convoy, for example, requires protection while moving. A major public event may need temporary airspace security. Airports and critical infrastructure may require continuous monitoring.
India’s counter-drone market is moving beyond the battlefield
The companies’ announcement reflects a broader change in how governments are viewing drone threats. The availability of relatively small unmanned aircraft has created security challenges across borders, airports, cities and public gatherings. Counter-UAS systems are consequently becoming relevant not just during military operations but as part of routine security infrastructure.
Indrajaal cited recent international developments as evidence of this transition, including a major counter-drone operation conducted by the United States during the 2026 FIFA World Cup and strengthened drone-defence measures in Germany following a serious security incident involving an explosive-laden drone near an airport.
The underlying argument is that counter-drone capability is becoming an everyday security requirement.
As Penumacha put it, “The drone threat does not begin when a war starts, and it does not end when a war stops.”
Private defence companies move into homeland security
The Rs 155 crore order also highlights the expanding role of India’s private defence industry in developing technologies for national security. Indrajaal has developed the counter-drone technology, while Sigma Advanced Systems is part of the consortium executing the larger border-security programme.
“This programme showcases the strength of India’s defence manufacturing ecosystem, where advanced indigenous technologies can be developed, manufactured and delivered at operational scale,” Sunil Kalidindi, CEO of Sigma Advanced Systems, said.
He said the programme demonstrates Sigma’s capabilities and its partnership with Indrajaal in strengthening India’s border and urban security.
From defence procurement to security infrastructure
The significance of the orders extends beyond their Rs 155 crore value. India’s counter-drone requirement is increasingly moving from a narrow military procurement category towards a broader homeland-security market.
That creates potential demand from the armed forces, border-security agencies, police forces, airports, critical infrastructure operators and authorities responsible for protecting VVIPs and large public gatherings.