DRDO eyes persistent high-altitude surveillance edge as Stratospheric Airship soars in maiden trial

'The flight lasted around 62 minutes, during which data was collected by onboard sensors,' the defence ministry said in a statement. It added that the airship was safely recovered after testing critical systems, including envelope pressure control and emergency deflation mechanisms.
Developed by the Agra-based Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment (ADRDE), the unmanned airship ascended to an altitude of approximately 17 kilometres, carrying an instrumented payload.
New Delhi: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Saturday conducted the maiden flight trial of its Stratospheric Airship Platform from the Sheopur test facility in Madhya Pradesh.
A stratospheric airship functions as a high-altitude pseudo-satellite (HAPS), designed to operate between 17 and 22 kilometres above the Earth for extended periods. It uses helium for lift and is typically powered by solar energy, with onboard batteries enabling night-time operation.
Unlike satellites or aircraft, such platforms can loiter over a fixed area for days or even weeks, offering persistent surveillance and communications support. Their capacity to carry imaging sensors, radar systems or telecommunications payloads makes them valuable for border monitoring, disaster response and wide-area intelligence missions.
They also fill a critical gap between drones and satellites, delivering the reach of space-based systems while offering faster deployment, lower costs and greater operational flexibility.
DRDO Chairman Samir V. Kamat hailed the flight as a significant achievement, describing it as a step towards developing long-endurance, lighter-than-air systems capable of operating in the stratosphere.
'This system will enhance India's earth observation and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, positioning the country among the few globally with such indigenous capabilities,' said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
Sources indicated that only a small number of countries have succeeded in developing similar high-altitude platforms, given the considerable technological and operational challenges involved.
(Edited by Radifah Kabir)
Also Read: India to get HawkEye 360 tech from the US. Here's how it spots 'dark vessels'

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

NDTV

an hour ago

• NDTV

Cognizant To Invest Rs 1,583 Crore For New India Campus, Add 8,000 Jobs

BENGALURU: Software services firm Cognizant Technology Solutions will invest Rs 1,583 crore ($182.76 million) to build a new campus in Vishakapatanam that will create about 8,000 jobs, the state government announced on Friday. Commercial operations will begin in March 2029, an Andhra Pradesh government press release said. Cognizant did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The announcement comes just months after India's top IT firm, Tata Consultancy Services, unveiled plans for 13.70 billion rupee campus in the same city, and is expected to generate 12,000 jobs. The move aligns with Cognizant's strategy to optimise real estate costs. In May 2023, Chief Executive Ravi Kumar S said the company would relinquish 11 million square feet of office space globally, mainly in India's largest cities, while investing in tier-2 Indian cities. Globally, IT companies, including those in India's $283 billion sector, are taking cost-cutting measures such as monetising real estate assets and delaying wage increases amid demand uncertainty. Last month, the Teaneck, New Jersey-based company raised its annual revenue forecast and beat first-quarter results driven by increased demand for AI-powered IT services. Cognizant expects 2025 annual revenue between $20.5 billion and $21.0 billion, compared to previous outlook of the midpoint of $20.30 billion to $20.80 billion.

The Wire

an hour ago

• The Wire

Solidus Techno Power Strengthens Long-Term O&M Capabilities Through Strategic Partnership with Sol-Bright

Punjab-based EPC leader integrates global robotic cleaning tech into current and future solar projects across India Patiala, Punjab, India (NewsVoir) Solidus Techno Power Pvt. Ltd., one of India's fastest-growing solar EPC companies, has signed a strategic long-term partnership with global O&M technology leader Sol-Bright New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. The collaboration begins with the deployment of dry-type robotic cleaning systems at Solidus' 28.71 MWp solar PV project in Kitasar, Rajasthan—but it is designed to extend across Solidus' expanding national portfolio in the coming years. With this alliance, Solidus takes a major step toward revolutionizing its operations and maintenance (O&M) strategy - introducing automated, water-free robotic cleaning solutions to enhance performance, reduce manual intervention, and ensure long-term sustainability, particularly in highdust and water-scarce zones. 'At Solidus, innovation isn't an add-on - it's integral to how we build and manage every solar project,' said Harvinder Singh, Director, Solidus Techno Power Pvt. Ltd..'Our partnership with Sol-Bright is not just about one site in Rajasthan. It's a long-term collaboration that supports our vision of building smart, self-sustaining solar infrastructure powered by global best practices in O&M.' Founded and headquartered in Punjab, Solidus Techno Power has emerged as a dynamic force in India's solar industry. Known for its high-quality execution, project customization, and future-ready EPC approach, the company is currently executing more than 200 MWp of solar projects across North India. With a sharp focus on performance optimization, Solidus is setting new standards in solar asset lifecycle management. The integration of Sol-Bright's 7th-generation dry-cleaning robots will allow Solidus to maintain energy efficiency while significantly reducing water usage and operational overhead. The deployment at Kitasar is a pilot for broader application across Solidus' upcoming C&I and utility-scale projects. Sol-Bright is the inventor of the Automatic Robotic (Dry) Cleaning System, and the world largest manufacturer and supplier of this cleaning robot. From 2013 till date, from 1st generation to 7th generation, Sol-Bright has supplied almost 98,000 units of robot and covered roughly 40 GWp capacity worldwide. From China to the world, Sol-Bright robot has its footprints in countries including KSA, UAE, Oman, Kuwait, Jordan, Palestine, Iran, Afghanistan, Israel, Uzbekistan, India, Thailand, Kenya, Eritrea, Australia, Chile, Argentina, USA, France and more on the way. Sol-Bright wins the market with its outstanding characteristics including: 100% dry cleaning, self-powered, long-distance and long-time cleaning, excellent ability of obstacle crossing, travelling posture adjustment, self-locking mechanism on docking station, patented non-disengaging flexible bridge design, high cleaning efficiency, intelligent SCADA control and more than ten (10) years' rich project experiences globally. Priya Gupta, Country Head – India at Sol-Bright, added, 'Solidus Techno Power is one of our valued partner - ambitious, quality-driven, and future-focused. We're proud to support their operational vision with our technology and look forward to scaling this partnership across many more projects.' This announcement reflects Solidus Techno Power's continued investment in smart energy infrastructure - pushing the boundaries of EPC and O&M excellence. As the company moves forward with its next phase of growth, strategic partnerships like this one reinforce its leadership role in building a sustainable solar-powered future for India. (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with Newsvoir and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). This is an auto-published feed from PTI with no editorial input from The Wire.

Economic Times

2 hours ago

• Economic Times

Swiggy pilots travel and lifestyle concierge app Crew

Swiggy has launched a travel and lifestyle concierge app, Crew, on a pilot basis, according to information about the app published on Google Play Store. This marks the Bengaluru-based company's entry into a new business after food delivery, dining out, quick commerce and professional services. The app, which involves human concierges in addition to generative artificial intelligence (AI), helps users plan trips, going beyond simply suggesting itineraries.A Swiggy spokesperson did not comment on the year, ahead of its initial public offering (IPO), the company had started testing Rare Life, a personalised concierge service focused on elite and exclusive experiences. However, this project was discontinued after Swiggy decided not to scale it up beyond a small cohort. In January, the company rolled out professional services marketplace Pyng, signalling that it was following a house of apps strategy similar to Chinese tech giants Alibaba and Meituan, which have also had multiple apps for various services. This is in contrast to the 'superapp' strategy, where consumers are expected to come for one basic use-case and transact across multiple services. Also, superapps are yet to see any noteworthy success at scale in Crew and Pyng, Swiggy now has the main app, which houses food delivery, quick commerce, dining out and its events platform Scenes. The quick commerce unit, Instamart, also got a separate app in launch of Crew was first reported by Entrackr. Swiggy recently suspended its peer-to-peer parcel delivery service Genie, which was available in 70 cities. The company has also licenced its cloud kitchen brands to food service outfit Kouzina, with plans to fully transfer these businesses upon fulfilment of certain conditions. On Friday, Swiggy shares ended 3.1% higher at Rs 385.90 on the BSE.