NEW DELHI – Indian Ministry of Defense will acquire 544 robots in order to fight extremist groups in the occupied state of Jammu and Kashmir, according to a report in Hindustan Times.
Military sources told the newspaper that the MoD gave a green light to develop the machines.
The robots will have surveillance cameras and transmission systems with a range of 200 meters, and will be able to deliver ammunition to the soldiers, they said.
At present the forces operating in that restive territory, the only India’s state with a Muslim majority, are using a remotely operated vehicle, Daksh, for handling improvised explosive devices.
Created by the Defense Research and Development Organization, Daksh can climb stairs, has three-hour endurance on battery, lifts 20-kg loads and can be remotely operated within a 500-meter range.
Backed by large sections of the population, in Indian Kashmir there are several separatist groups seeking independence of that region or its annexation to Pakistan.
The dispute over Kashmir divided region is the main obstacle for the normalization of relations between India and Pakistan.
