Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday hailed the indigenous "Project Kusha" air defence system as a transformative asset for India's security, comparing its protective capability to the legendary Govardhan Hill.
Adressing the inaugural ceremony of the Advanced Weapon System Complex at DRDL (DRDO) in Hyderabad, the Defence Minister underscored the system's strategic importance, stating, "Today I predict that the Project Kusha will be a game changer for India's security scenario".
Project Kusha is an indigenous, long-range Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) defence system being developed by the DRDO. Designed to rival Russia's S-400, it features three interceptor variants (150 km, 250 km, and 400 km ranges) to protect against stealth aircraft, drones, and hypersonic weapons. It is slated for operational deployment around 2028-2030.
He highlighted that the system has already proven its effectiveness during "Operation Sindoor," a 2025 tri-services military campaign launched following a terror attack in Pahalgam.
"It is a world-class indigenous air defence system, which has proved its importance during Operation Sindoor. No further proof is needed... Just as the Govardhan hill protected the entire region of Braj in the Dvapara Yuga, our air defence system provided a protective umbrella for the entire region during that period," said Rajnath Singh.
Designed to rival advanced global systems, Project Kusha features three interceptor variants with ranges between 150 km and 400 km, providing a multi-layered shield against diverse threats, including stealth aircraft, drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic weapons.
The Defence Minister higlighted that there is a massive transformation underway in the country's defence ecosystem, stating that "DRDO laboratories, defence public sector undertakings, private industries, startups, MSMEs, and academia are working together with greater integration than ever before... It is evident that this collaborative model will accelerate India's journey from innovation to production, and from production to operational capability; this is my firm belief. The government has placed immense trust in DRDO for the development of indigenous defence technology."
Singh further emphasised that the world is going through instability and turmoil, where there is "conflict in some places, instability in others, and in some, the situation of outright war is emerging".
"The international order is passing through a phase of tension and change. Old assumptions are breaking down, and new alliances and new challenges are taking shape," he said.
"In this environment, if a nation wants to safeguard its security and interests, then its needs to have two things: one is resillince, which means to have the capability to absorb any shock and stand up and other is deterrence, which means the ability to put fear in any potenstial agressor that if he looks at us with the wrong intenstions, that it would have to pay heavily," he added.
The Defence Minister noted that global warfare is undergoing a rapid transformation, driven by the integration of AI, electronic warfare, and advanced sensor technologies, among other advancements.
"In times of global turmoil, programs like 'Kusha' and institutions like DRDL instil confidence in the nation's people, assuring them that we will neither bow before external instability nor allow any shortcomings in our preparedness," he further said.
Meanwhile, Rajnath Singh earlier also interacted with eminent personalities in Hyderabad, including Indian Badminton player Srikanth Kidambi, Indian professional shooter Esha Singh, actor Teja Sajja, actor Adivi Sesh, along with others at Jubilee Hills.
