India has unveiled plans to field its first homegrown missile defense shield by 2035, aiming to protect both strategic and civilian targets against aerial threats. Chief of Defense Staff General Anil Chauhan said Tuesday that the system, named “Sudarshan Chakra,” would function as a counterpart to Israel’s Iron Dome. Speaking at a seminar in Mhow, Madhya Pradesh, he explained that the shield would rely on a network of drones and missile interceptors to track and destroy hostile projectiles. The announcement follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day address, in which he underscored the need for a robust air defense system.

Chauhan stated that the shield would be designed to neutralize multiple forms of aerial threats, including attack drones and long-range missiles. While technical details were not disclosed, the general emphasized that its role would be to secure “India’s strategic, civilian, and nationally important sites.” The project reflects New Delhi’s growing emphasis on indigenous defense production as it tries to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers. Experts, however, have cautioned that for a country with India’s geographic scale, building such a shield would be both technologically complex and financially demanding.

Lessons From The May Conflict With Pakistan

The urgency behind Sudarshan Chakra stems from the four-day conflict with Pakistan earlier this year, when both nations exchanged missile strikes and deployed thousands of drones. Civilian and military infrastructure, including airfields, were hit during the confrontation. The episode revealed gaps in India’s aerial defense and highlighted the importance of developing an effective shield to mitigate future threats. The defense chief said the conflict had reinforced “the absolute necessity of having a multi-layered defensive architecture.”

India is currently the world’s second-largest arms importer after Ukraine, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. New Delhi has increased its investment in indigenous defense industries while seeking advanced technology transfers from allies such as France, Germany, and the United States. The Sudarshan Chakra initiative is expected to play a central role in this strategy, combining local production with foreign collaboration. Analysts say the shield could become a showcase for India’s broader push for self-reliant defense, even as questions remain about the feasibility of such a large-scale project.