Two New Pinaka Rocket Regiments Coming: Why India's Indigenous Artillery Upgrade Is Likely To Rattle China, Pakistan
New Delhi: India's long-term artillery modernisation plan is entering a decisive phase, with the Army set to induct two more regiments of the indigenous Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launcher system. With these additions, the total number of operational Pinaka regiments will rise to 10 by 2026, signaling the gradual replacement of outdated Soviet-era Grad BM-21 systems that have been in service for decades.
Designed by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), this rocket system has already proven its value in operations along the northern and western borders. Its six regiments are currently active in areas facing China and Pakistan. The addition of two more will further strengthen India's deep-strike capabilities and reduce dependence on foreign-origin equipment.
Sources in the defense establishment told The New Indian Express that training for the personnel of the upcoming regiments is already underway. Launchers, command posts and support equipment are expected to be delivered by the end of this year. If all goes to plan, the new regiments will be combat-ready by early 2026.
Each regiment is equipped with 18 launchers, capable of delivering massive firepower in seconds. Each Pinaka battery can launch up to 72 rockets in just 44 seconds, saturating an area of nearly 1,000 square meters with precision strikes.
With a maximum range of 38 kilometres at sea level, extended further in mountainous terrain, the system allows the Army to target enemy positions deep inside hostile territory with minimal response time.
Named after Lord Shiva's mythological bow, Pinaka has evolved into a cornerstone of India's indigenous artillery ecosystem. It stands alongside heavy-duty platforms like the Russian-origin Smerch systems and integrates smoothly with Bofors guns, M777 howitzers and upgraded L-70 air defense guns.
India's move to expand the Pinaka fleet comes with both strategic and operational implications. The Ministry of Defence had signed a Rs 2,580 crore contract in 2020 with Tata Power, Larsen & Toubro and BEML for manufacturing and supplying six regiments' worth of launchers, vehicles and support systems.
Two of those six regiments became operational in 2024, while the remaining four are in the pipeline, including the two now under training.
In total, 114 launchers are currently in service across the six active regiments. These are equipped with automated gun aiming and positioning systems (AGAPS) and supported by 330 BEML-supplied vehicles and 45 command posts. The operational experience gained over the last few years has allowed the Army to refine deployment strategies, optimize logistics and increase interoperability with other ground-based firepower assets.
The larger objective is phasing out the Grad BM-21 rocket systems of Soviet origin, which first saw combat during the 1969 Sino-Soviet border conflict. Though reliable, the Grad's 1960s-era technology is increasingly unsuited for modern high-precision and high-mobility battlefields.
Pinaka's growing presence on India's frontlines reflects shift in military doctrine – one that prioritises speed, indigenous capability and operational independence. As geopolitical tensions remain high along India's northern borders, the Army's push for advanced and domestically developed artillery systems is likely to remain a cornerstone of its defense preparedness through the next decade.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India.com
an hour ago
- India.com
Russia making air defence system that destroyed Pakistani drones and missiles during Operation Sindoor even more powerful, India will...
New Delhi: Russia has started serial production of mini missiles for the Pantsir air defence system. This is one of those defence systems that destroyed Pakistani drones in the sky during Operation Sindoor. What is Pantsir capable of? This system is capable of shooting down dozens of drones at once. Apart from this, it can also shoot down other low flying objects like helicopters and spy balloons. Russia has also used this defence system extensively during the Ukraine war. Apart from this, Russia has also exported it to at least 10 countries other than India. What does media say about Pantsir? According to the report of Russian state media Sputnik, Russian state corporation Rostec said, 'The mini missiles of the Pantsir air defense missile system of our High-Precision Systems Holding Company have passed all their tests in different regions of the country and have now been sent for serial production.' Rostec said that these mini missiles can easily shoot down enemy mini swarm drones. Many drones can be destroyed in one attack. Rostec said in its statement, 'Now one Pantsir-SMD-E can destroy dozens of unmanned aerial vehicles.' How it performed in Ukraine Rostec has said that mini missiles for the Pantsir system were used for the first time in the war against Ukraine. During this time, this system has destroyed targets with accuracy. Russia has been calling the Ukraine war a special military operation since the beginning. In such a situation, the inclusion of mini missiles in the Pantsir system will make Russia's air defense more powerful and it will get a strong defense shield against Ukraine's drones. How powerful is Pantsir S-1 The Pantsir S-1 is an automatic, medium-range surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft system. It mainly has three types of components, which together form the Pantsir S1 system. These include a missile launcher, a radar truck and a command post. The Pantsir-S1 has been made by the KBP Instrument Design Bureau of the Russian company Tula. It is considered to be a replacement for Russia's old Tunguska M1. The Pantsir-S1 is considered a precision weapon for the military against aircraft, helicopters, precision ammunition, cruise missiles and UAVs. In August 2024, Russia completed tests of a manoeuvrable track-based Pantsir-SM-SV system for service with Russian Ground Forces and Airborne Forces.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
2 hours ago
- First Post
Senate Republicans race to pass Trump-backed ‘Big Beautiful Bill' ahead of July 4 deadline
At some 940 pages, the legislation is a sprawling collection of tax breaks, spending cuts and other Republican priorities, including new money for national defence and deportations. Now it's up to Congress to decide whether President Donald Trump's signature's domestic policy package will become law. read more President Donald Trump points to a reporter to take a question as he speaks to the media, Friday, June 27, 2025, in the briefing room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo) Senate Republicans are putting all the efforts to pass a key budget bill central to President Donald Trump's second-term agenda to clear a major hurdle before the self-imposed July 4 deadline. Party leaders are pressing for an initial vote on the legislation, dubbed as the 'Big Beautiful Bill' by Saturday afternoon, after releasing the latest 940-page version just past midnight. The bill, which builds on a $3.8 trillion extension of Trump-era tax cuts, narrowly cleared the House of Representatives two weeks ago. However, Senate Republicans remain divided, particularly over how deeply to slash welfare programmes to help offset the bill's steep cost. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The legislation is expected to trigger an intense debate over the weekend as leaders scramble to unify the party and move forward with one of the most significant economic proposals of Trump's presidency. The legislation follows a version passed by the House of Representatives last month, which nonpartisan analysts estimated would add roughly $3 trillion to the national debt, now at $36.2 trillion. Despite those concerns, the White House has argued the bill would ultimately reduce the annual deficit by $1.4 trillion. 'By passing this bill now, we will make our nation more prosperous and secure,' Senate Budget Committee Chair Lindsey Graham said in a statement. The bill is likely to face a flurry of Democratic amendments during the weekend session, though these are not expected to pass in the 53-47 Republican-controlled Senate. Intra-party disagreement remains a challenge for Republicans, especially around proposed cuts to Medicaid. Senators from states with large rural populations had objected to earlier provisions that would reduce state tax revenue for Medicaid providers. The latest draft delays those reductions and includes a $25 billion support package for rural Medicaid providers between 2028 and 2032. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The legislation also proposes raising the cap on federal deductions for state and local taxes (SALT) to $40,000 with a 1% annual inflation adjustment through 2029, after which the cap would revert to $10,000. The cap would begin to phase down for individuals earning over $500,000 a year. This provision is key for House Republicans from high-tax states like New York, New Jersey, and California, whose support is critical to maintaining the party's narrow majority. Senate Republicans are employing a legislative maneuver known as budget reconciliation to bypass the usual 60-vote threshold needed to advance most legislation, allowing the bill to proceed with a simple majority in the 100-member chamber. What's in the latest version of Trump's big bill Tax cuts are the priority Republicans say the bill is crucial because without it, there would be a massive tax increase, totalling some $3.8 trillion, after December when tax breaks from Trump's first term expire. Those existing tax rates and brackets would become permanent under the bill. It temporarily would add new ones that Trump campaigned on: no taxes on tips, overtime pay or some automotive loans, along with a bigger $6,000 deduction in the Senate draft for older adults who earn no more than $75,000 a year. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD It would boost the $2,000 child tax credit to $2,200 under the Senate proposal, or $2,500 in the House's version. Families at lower income levels would not see the full amount, if any. A cap on state and local deductions, called SALT, would quadruple to $40,000 for five years. It's a provision important to New York and other high tax states, though the House wanted it to last for 10 years. There are scores of business-related tax cuts. The wealthiest households would see a $12,000 increase from the legislation, which would cost the poorest people $1,600 a year, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office analysis of the House's version. Middle-income taxpayers would see a tax break of $500 to $1,500, the CBO said. Money for deportations, a border wall and the Golden Dome The bill would provide some $350 billion for Trump's border and national security agenda, including $46 billion for the U.S.-Mexico border wall and $45 billion for 100,000 migrant detention facility beds, as he aims to full his promise of the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history. Money would go for hiring 10,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, with $10,000 signing bonuses and a surge of Border Patrol officers, as well. The goal is to deport some 1 million people per year. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The homeland security secretary would have a new $10 billion fund for grants for states that help with federal immigration enforcement and deportation actions. The attorney general would have $3.5 billion for a similar fund, known as Bridging Immigration-related Deficits Experienced Nationwide, or BIDEN, referring to former Democratic President Joe Biden. To help pay for it all, immigrants would face various new fees, including when seeking asylum protections. For the Pentagon, the bill would provide billions for ship building, munitions systems, and quality of life measures for servicemen and women, as well as $25 billion for the development of the Golden Dome missile defence system. The Defence Department would have $1 billion for border security. How to pay for it? Cuts to Medicaid and other programs To help partly offset the lost tax revenue and new spending, Republicans are seeking to cut back some long-running government programs: Medicaid, food stamps, green energy incentives and others. It's essentially unravelling the accomplishments of the past two Democratic presidents, Biden and Barack Obama. Republicans argue they are trying to rightsized the safety net programs for the population they were initially designed to serve, mainly pregnant women and children, and root out what they describe as waste, fraud and abuse. The package includes new 80-hour-a-month work requirements for many adults receiving Medicaid and food stamps, including older people up to age 65. Parents of children 14 and older would have to meet the program's work requirements. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD There's also a proposed new $35 co-payment that can be charged to patients using Medicaid services. Some 80 million people rely on Medicaid, which expanded under Obama's Affordable Care Act, and 40 million use the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program. Most already work, according to analysts. All told, the CBO estimates that under the House-passed bill, at least 10.9 million more people would go without health coverage and 3 million more would not qualify for food stamps. The Senate proposes a $25 billion Rural Hospital Transformation Fund to help offset those reductions. It's a new addition, intended to win over holdout GOP senators and a coalition of House Republicans warning that the proposed Medicaid provider tax cuts would hurt rural hospitals. Both the House and Senate bills propose a dramatic rollback of the Biden-era green energy tax breaks for electric vehicles. They also would phase out or terminate various the production and investment tax credits companies use to stand up wind, solar and other renewable energy projects. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In total, cuts to Medicaid, food stamps and green energy programs would be expected to produce at least $1.5 trillion in savings. Trump savings accounts and so, so much more A number of extra provisions reflect other GOP priorities. The House and Senate both have a new children's savings program, called Trump Accounts, with a potential $1,000 deposit from the Treasury. The Senate provided $40 million to establish Trump's long-sought 'National Garden of American Heroes.' There's a new excise tax on university endowments, restrictions on the development of artificial intelligence and blocks on transgender surgeries. A $200 tax on gun silencers and short-barrelled rifles and shotguns was eliminated. One provision bars money to family planning providers, namely Planned Parenthood, while $88 million is earmarked for a pandemic response accountability committee. Billions go for the Artemis moon mission and for exploration to Mars. Trump savings accounts and so, so much more Altogether, keeping the existing tax breaks and adding the new ones is expected to cost $3.8 trillion over the decade, the CBO says in its analysis of the House bill. An analysis of the Senate draft is pending. The CBO estimates the House-passed package would add $2.4 trillion to the nation's deficits over the decade. Or not, depending on how one does the math. Senate Republicans are proposing a unique strategy of not counting the existing tax breaks as a new cost because those breaks are already 'current policy.' Senators say the Senate Budget Committee chairman has the authority to set the baseline for the preferred approach. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Under the Senate GOP view, the cost of tax provisions would be $441 billion, according to the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation. Democrats and others say this is 'magic math' that obscures the costs of the GOP tax breaks. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget puts the Senate tally at $4.2 trillion over the decade. With inputs from agencies
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Trump's Big, Beautiful Bill sparks panic among MAGA voters: ‘We'd lose everything'
President Trump's proposed $3.8 trillion tax cut bill, dubbed his "big, beautiful bill," is sparking alarm among his supporters due to potential Medicaid cuts. These cuts, estimated to impact millions, could jeopardize healthcare access for vulnerable populations, including children and individuals with disabilities. Concerns are mounting as families fear losing essential support for life-saving treatments. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Voters Who Re-Elected Donald Trump Now Sound the Alarm A Missouri Mother's Plea: 'This Isn't a Luxury' Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads CBO Warns That Cuts Could Impact Millions Some Republicans Express Quiet Concern FAQs As US president Donald Trump champions his latest legislative push, a sweeping $3.8 trillion in tax cuts, he calls his 'big, beautiful bill', now panic is quietly taking hold in the very communities that helped re-elect him in 2024 election, as per a of the main concerns is deep cuts to Medicaid that many Trump voters say could cost them their homes, their health care, and even their loved ones, according to the Stitch Snitches those voicing out their concerns is Courtney Leader, a 36-year-old mother from Missouri, a deep-red state where Trump defeated former vice president Kamala Harris by 18 points, according to the report. Leader isn't a political operative or an activist, but she's just a mom trying to keep her daughter, Cyrina, alive, as per the Stitch Snitches READ: California's AB5 Law under fire, nail techs sue state over worker classification – what the law states? She explained that, 'This is not a luxury,' adding, 'I do not have my daughter enrolled on Medicaid so we can have fancy things. I have her enrolled so we can keep her alive and keep her at home, which I think is the best option for her,' as quoted in the relies on a specialised feeding formula that costs over $1,500 a month, which is more than the family's mortgage and grocery bills combined, and without Medicaid, Leader says there's no way they could cover the cost, according to the Stitch Snitches asked, 'Who's going to protect us when they can't get paperwork done in time and we lose coverage for a month or two?," and added, "I'm worried that the red tape is going to affect our Medicaid because of just the oversight burdens. And that as a result, I'm going to lose my daughter, because she's lost coverage before,' as quoted in the has even written a letter to communicated about her concerns to Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri), a Trump supporter and key defender of the bill, she pleaded with him to consider the human cost, saying, 'Without Medicaid, we would lose everything — our home, our vehicles, and eventually, our daughter,' quoted Stitch READ: Pokrovsk in peril? Tensions surge as 111,000 Russian troops gather near Ukraine's frontline hotspot The concern comes as the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that Trump's proposed bill could push 16 million Americans off Medicaid by 2034, according to the report. While Trump and Republican leaders insist the cuts only target 'waste, fraud, and abuse,' the CBO's analysis highlighted that the vulnerable populations—including children, seniors, and people with disabilities, will be directly impacted if the bill becomes law in its current form, according to the to the Stitch Snitches report, the proposed Medicaid cuts have also led to concern among some GOP senators, who fear that millions of constituents could lose a $3.8 trillion tax cut package that also includes significant cuts to programmes like Medicaid and food families, especially those with children, elderly, or disabled members, depend on Medicaid for life-saving care. Cuts could mean losing coverage or access to services, as per the report.
