Brief List of some of the projects and products which are and were undertaken by ARDE are as follows.
Small arms 7.62×51 1A1 self loading rifle personnel carrying a 7.62mm 1A1 rifle in
West Bengal during
General Elections 2009. One of the earlier ARDE developments was the
7.62 mm 1A1 self-loading rifle (SLR) and its ammunition which replaced the
Ishapore 2A1 bolt-action rifles (based on the
0.303 Lee–Enfield rifle) in the
Indian Army service then. Over a million rifles have been produced by the
Rifle Factory Ishapore, and were used in the
1965 and
1971 Indo-Pakistan Wars.
INSAS 5.56 mm small arms family Drawing heavily from its past experience with the 7.62mm SLR, ARDE developed the
5.56 mm Indian Small Arms System (INSAS). This helped standardize ammunition for infantry, reducing logistical problems. The infantry was earlier equipped with three types of small arms firing two types of ammunition, viz. 7.62 mm Ishapore SLR, LMG and 9 mm carbine. The INSAS family replaces all the three weapons, and consists of an
Assault Rifle, a
Light Machine Gun, and a Carbine Variant. The INSAS was introduced in 1998, and has since supplanted the SLR as the service rifle of the Indian Army.
ARDE Under Barrel Grenade Launcher The single shot
ARDE Under Barrel Grenade Launcher was developed in collaboration with
Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli for use with the
INSAS and
AK-47 rifles. Stand alone versions of the grenade launcher also exist. The UBGL has an in-built safety to prevent accidental firing and a 3-point attachment for rigidity. The trigger system is, located on the side of the barrel, allowing the soldier to fire both the rifle and grenade launcher without having to change his firing posture.
Artillery and tank guns 105 mm Indian Field Gun Designed by ARDE in 1972, the
Indian Field Gun (IFG). It became the mainstay of the army's field artillery after being introduced.
Pinaka multi barrel rocket launcher The
Pinaka multi barrel rocket launcher was developed by the
DRDO for the
Indian Army. Development began in 1983. The Army had felt the need for a weapon system which could neutralize targets at ranges exceeding 30 km. To meet this demand, Pinaka MBRLS was developed. The project was a major program involving several DRDO Labs, Public and Private Sector Firms. This was one of the first major projects involving the Private sector.
L&T and
Tata have been given orders worth Rs. 390 crores The system comprises a free-flight artillery rocket with different types of warheads & fuzes, a multi-tube launcher vehicle, a replenishment-cum-loader vehicle, a replenishment vehicle and a command post vehicle. The system is capable of firing in salvo mode within 48 sec, neutralizing an area of 700 x 500 m. The Pinaka was successfully used in
Kargil War against Fortified Pakistani Positions in the mountains. The Army has placed an order for 6 regiments, with one already operational.
Arjun 120 mm gun The Arjun MBT's 120 mm main gun is a
rifled gun developed and tested by ARDE for use with the
Arjun tank. The gun is one of the few rifled tank guns in modern tanks (like the
Challenger 2). It is capable of firing rounds at velocities over 1650 m/s, and can sustain pressures of up to 612
MPa. ARDE has also developed the Ammunition system for the gun, with
FSAPDS being the primary
kinetic energy round used. The Arjun can also use
HEAT,
HESH and other rounds, as well as being able to fire the
LAHAT Anti-tank missile The armament and ammunition system are under current production at OFB.
DRDO ATAGS The project for the development of DRDO
Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System of
calibre 155mm/52 involved ARDE.
Others Ejection seat ARDE has developed an ejection seat for
HAL Tejas military aircraft. The British
Martin-Baker ejection seat used for initial prototype is planned to be replaced with a locally developed alternative.
Canopy Severance System The
Canopy Severance System (CSS) is intended to save the pilot as quickly as possible in both in-flight and on-ground crises. Instead of using the canopy jettisoning method, which has the significant drawback of taking up crucial time needed for pilots to safely evacuate from damaged aircraft, the CSS is based on ejection through the canopy severance mechanism. ARDE and
High Energy Material Research Laboratory are working together to develop the CSS for HAL Tejas,
HAL HJT-36 Yashas, and
HAL HTT-40. It replaced the imported systems from USA and Russia. The feasibility study started in 1992. The development work was completed in 1998 and is primarily tied to HAL Tejas before it is intended for use in other aircraft in service with the
Indian Armed Forces. One of CSS's features is that it can also be controlled from outside the aircraft in the case of a crash landing or when the pilot is incapacitated from injuries. The ejection success rate has been enhanced to 99.9% from prior 95%. The CSS was used in the assembly of the
HAL Tejas TD-1,
TD-2, and
PV-1 aircraft with successful trials in 2005. It received certification from Bengaluru's Institute of Aerospace Medicine by 2011. By 2025, GOCL Corporation will manufacture and provide 75 CSS sets for HAL HTT-40 aircraft and 105 CSS sets for HAL Tejas.
Daksh robot Daksh is an electrically powered and remotely controlled robot used for locating, handling and destroying hazardous objects safely.
Extended Range Anti-Submarine Rocket (ERASR) In the 2020s, ARDE worked with the
High Energy Materials Research Laboratory and the
Naval Science and Technological Laboratory to create ERASR, an extended range version of the
RGB-60 rocket that was previously employed in the
RBU-6000 and its Indian equivalent, Indigenous Rocket Launchers (IRL). With its twin motor propulsion system, ERASR can launch the rocket in both short-range and long-range modes. On April 3, 2023, the rocket was successfully test fired from . The
Indian Navy finished the ERASR user trials from the IRL aboard between June 27 and July 3, 2025. During the trials, 17 rockets at various ranges were successfully fired. Every trial goal, such as range performance, electronic time fuze operation, and warhead functioning, was successfully proved. The rocket system is being produced in collaboration with Solar Defence & Aerospace Limited and
Bharat Dynamics Limited. The ERASR System is anticipated to be introduced by the Navy shortly.
Railgun A small, road-transportable
railgun model that is prepared for field testing was displayed at
Aero India 2025. It consists of a railgun, modular capacitors, lithium cell batteries, and a 15
kW diesel engine that can charge the battery in half an hour. The capacitor gets charged to 10
megajoules using the battery's energy. With a monolithic
armature, the railgun harnesses the energy to propel the bullet to muzzle speeds of more than 2,000 meters per second. Each of the 25 modular capacitor power banks in the system has a 400 kilojoule storage capacity. At a pace of three rounds per minute, the railgun can fire thirty rounds. The rails have a lifespan of over 50 shots. By 2022, ARDE had successfully created a 10
megajoule railgun with a bore diameter of 12 to 45 mm that could fire projectiles up to 1 kg in weight. In 2025, a projectile weighing around 50 kg can be fired by the device across a distance of almost 200 km. ARDE aims to scale this technology by concentrating on railguns with energy capacity of up to 100
MJ, which might propel projectiles at velocities exceeding 2,000 m/s—possibly reaching hypersonic speeds of over 3,000 m/s. == References ==