India has strengthened its capital’s air defence with the deployment of the indigenous Vajra Anti-Drone System at Kartavya Path in New Delhi. The system has been installed by Chennai-based defence firm Big Bang Boom Solutions (BBBS) as part of efforts to counter emerging aerial threats, especially those posed by low-cost and commercially available drones. 

Officials said the deployment is aimed at reinforcing a layered air defence framework in the capital. “The installation at Kartavya Path reflects India’s growing reliance on home-grown counter-drone technologies to address asymmetric threats,” an official statement noted. 

The Vajra system, also known as Vajra Sentinel, has been designed to operate in a rapidly changing aerial threat environment. According to officials, the system has shown performance levels that are comparable with both domestic and global counter-UAS platforms. “The system has demonstrated benchmarks that stand at par with international solutions,” officials said. 

The anti-drone system has been fully developed in India after more than five years of research and development, extensive field testing, and multiple validation exercises. BBBS confirmed that the system has received clearance from the Directorate General of Aeronautical Quality Assurance (DGAQA). An official said, “The Vajra system has successfully achieved DGAQA clearance after rigorous trials.” 

One of the key highlights of the system’s development was its performance during user acceptance trials. “The Vajra Anti-Drone System cleared user acceptance trials on the first attempt, a milestone that even established defence manufacturers often struggle to achieve,” an official stated. 

BBBS’ position in the counter-drone sector was further strengthened in 2024, when the company secured orders worth over ₹200 crore from the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army. Officials said these contracts have placed the Vajra system as a frontline solution for securing sensitive military and strategic locations. “These orders underline the trust placed in the Vajra system by the armed forces,” the company said. 

The Vajra Anti-Drone System is designed to detect and neutralise commercial off-the-shelf drones, including popular models such as the DJI Mavic and Phantom series. Officials highlighted that the system relies on passive radio-frequency sensing, which helps maintain near-zero false alarms while remaining covert. “Passive RF sensing allows the system to stay undetected while ensuring high accuracy,” an official explained. 

Both the sensor and jammer units of the system comply with MIL-STD-801G standards, making them suitable for long-term military use in harsh operational conditions. Officials added that advanced sensor fusion, artificial intelligence, and computer vision technologies allow the system to accurately detect and classify hostile drones. 

The system also features autonomous decision-making capabilities. “Its neural network architecture enables the system to automatically select countermeasures such as targeted jamming without operator intervention,” officials said, adding that this capability is critical in high-threat situations where reaction time is limited.

In terms of design, Vajra follows a distributed architecture, avoiding reliance on a single mast-based structure. Officials noted that this approach removes single points of failure and improves system resilience. “The modular design allows rapid customisation and integration, including deployment on armoured vehicles used by the Indian Army,” an official said. 

Built with line-replaceable units, the system is also hot-swap ready, ensuring continuous operation even if components are damaged during hostile action. “This design ensures uninterrupted performance in combat conditions,” officials added. 

With its deployment at Kartavya Path, the Vajra Anti-Drone System highlights the progress of India’s indigenous defence ecosystem. Officials said that as drone-based threats continue to grow, domestically developed solutions like Vajra are crucial for protecting high-value national assets while reducing dependence on imported defence technologies.