Army to set up specialised units to strengthen cybersecurity

The expansion of cyber warfare capabilities by India’s adversaries has made the cyber domain more competitive.

The Indian Army is set to create specialised units to strengthen its cybersecurity capabilities, defend its networks, and counter threats in the key domain at a time of growing importance of cyberspace in both conventional operations and grey zone warfare, even as the force is laying the roadmap for absorption of niche technologies to bolster its fighting prowess, officials familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

The decision to raise these new units was taken last week during the Army Commanders’ Conference. (ANI image)

The expansion of cyber warfare capabilities by India’s adversaries (China has invested heavily in building capabilities in this domain) has made the cyber domain more competitive and contested than ever before, and the army is swiftly migrating towards net centricity that entails increased reliance on modern communication systems, said one of the officials cited above, asking not to be named.

Grey zone warfare refers to employing aggression and other actions to achieve national objectives below the threshold of armed conflict and the ambiguity it creates.

With rapid migration towards net centricity for warfighting advantage through shared awareness of the battlespace using technology, the army’s top commanders reviewed the requirement to safeguard the networks and decided to operationalise command cyber operations and support wings (CCOSW) in the immediate future, the army said in a statement on Thursday.

The decision to raise these new units was among the key decisions taken last week during the Army Commanders’ Conference, chaired by army chief General Manoj Pande.

The top level officials reviewed the army’s operational readiness, modernisation efforts, indigenisation, and identified areas for promoting jointness and integration with the other two services, the officials said.

At the conference, the army officials also laid the roadmap for the exploitation of niche technologies and equipment that are being inducted in the force, said a second official, who also asked not to be named. These systems include a variety of unmanned aerial vehicles, loitering munitions, drone swarms, anti-drone gear and electronic warfare equipment, he said.

Seamless exploitation of niche equipment also has an impact on the refinement of the existing tactics, techniques and procedures, training and maintenance of the equipment, he said.

“To augment the capabilities by absorption of niche technologies and equipment, it was decided to nominate lead directorates and ‘test bed’ formations to evolve optimal employment philosophies to facilitate better exploitation,” the statement said.

Future threats line in cyberspace and outer space, said military affairs expert Lieutenant General Vinod Bhatia (retd).

“It is imperative that we build capabilities, both defensive and deterrence, by inducting and exploiting niche technologies, especially in the cyber and space domains,” Bhatia said.

Another key decision taken at the conference related to the technical entry scheme (TES) for officers, the officials said.

“In the TES, it was decided to transit from the existing 1+3+1 years model to a 3 + 1 model from January 2024. This change will also accrue the benefit of availability of more officers in units and address officer shortage,” the statement said.

A five-year TES model currently exists for the entry of BTech graduates into the army as officers. Introduced in the 1999, under the model, one-year military training is imparted at the Officers Training Academy (OTA), Gaya, followed by a three-year BTech degree at cadet training wings (CTWs), and another year at the three engineering colleges of the army --- College of Military Engineering (CME), Pune, Military College of Telecommunication Engineering (MCTE), Mhow and Military College of Mechanical & Electronics Engineering (MCEME), Secunderabad.

The army will now have a 3+1 model, with three years of technical training at CTWs, followed by one-year basic military training at Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, said the first officer. The four-year training model will ensure that young officers are available to serve in units for an additional year, he added.

Another decision taken at the conference related to identifying, selecting and training battle and physical casualties for paralympic events, the officials said.

The progress on the construction of Thal Sena Bhawan at Delhi Cantt was also discussed at the conference.

“The work, once completed in 2025, will not only address the shortage of office spaces but also enhance the operational and functional efficiency of the Army HQ by bringing all the directorates under one roof,” the statement said.

It is being built at a cost of ₹832 crore, the officials said.