Centre warns of potential drone attacks on vital installations

📌 Summary:

• The Union government has warned of possible rogue drone attacks targeting vital installations along India's borders, prompting security agencies to deploy counter-drone technology systems to safeguard critical assets
• The alert on the emerging drone threat was issued by the Marine Security Wing of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, covering Vital Assets and Vital Installations (VAVIs) located around land and sea borders
• The warning reflects the rising use of cheap, hard-to-detect drones for smuggling (arms, drugs) and potential sabotage, especially along the western border
• Counter-drone (C-UAS) measures include detection (radar, RF sensors), jamming/soft-kill and hard-kill systems to neutralise hostile UAVs

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS3 (Internal Security) — border management, asymmetric threats, drone warfare and protection of critical infrastructure

📝 Prelims Facts:

• The alert was issued by the Marine Security Wing of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways
• Target category: Vital Assets and Vital Installations (VAVIs) near land and sea borders
• C-UAS (Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems) use detection, soft-kill (jamming) and hard-kill methods

🔑 Key Term: Counter-drone (C-UAS) technology — systems to detect, track and neutralise hostile unmanned aerial vehicles threatening sensitive installations