DRDO Moves 30 kW Laser Weapon Towards Production, Industry Partner Selection Planned Within Six Months

India’s indigenous 30 kW-class laser directed-energy weapon is moving from technology demonstration towards production, with the Defence Research and Development Organisation planning to issue an Expression of Interest within the next six months to select an industry partner for manufacturing the system.

The latest update was provided by Dr. B.K. Das, Director General, Electronics and Communication Systems at DRDO, who said the technology has already been demonstrated and that the next stage will focus on identifying a production partner. The first-of-production model is expected to be available within about a year, after which it will undergo additional trials to verify performance parameters and user requirements.

From Technology Demonstration to Production

The announcement marks an important change in the programme’s status. DRDO has already completed the core technology-demonstration phase for the 30 kW system, and the focus is now shifting towards converting the prototype into a production-standard weapon that can be manufactured by Indian industry.

The planned Expression of Interest will be used to identify an industrial partner capable of taking the system through manufacturing, integration and subsequent production stages. DRDO’s broader policy has increasingly emphasised transferring mature technologies to Indian companies and bringing private-sector manufacturers, MSMEs and startups into the defence production chain.

CHESS Leads Development of the Laser Weapon

The 30 kW system has been developed primarily by DRDO’s Centre for High Energy Systems and Sciences in Hyderabad, with support from other DRDO laboratories, academic institutions and Indian industry.

CHESS has been working on high-energy laser technologies, beam control, precision tracking and thermal-management systems required for directed-energy weapons. DRDO records identify the laboratory as one of the organisation’s principal centres for directed-energy technology development.

The system is vehicle-mounted, allowing it to be transported and deployed as part of a mobile air-defence formation. This configuration is particularly important for counter-drone operations, where the weapon may need to accompany field formations and respond quickly to low-altitude aerial threats.

Kurnool Trial Demonstrated 30 kW Capability

The programme achieved a major milestone on April 13, 2025, when DRDO demonstrated the vehicle-mounted Mk-II(A) Laser Directed Energy Weapon at the National Open Air Range in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh.

During that demonstration, the system engaged a fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle, countered a multiple-drone attack and disabled surveillance sensors and antennae. DRDO said the test demonstrated the ability to direct a high-power laser beam onto an aerial target with extremely high precision.

The trial also showed that India had developed indigenous capability in high-power laser engagement, with critical subsystems and components developed through cooperation between CHESS, other DRDO laboratories, academic institutions and more than 15 Indian industries.

Designed Primarily for Counter-Drone Operations

The 30 kW system has been developed mainly for countering drones and other relatively small aerial threats.

Directed-energy weapons differ from conventional air-defence missiles because they use concentrated electromagnetic energy rather than an explosive interceptor. A high-energy laser can damage an aircraft structurally, burn through critical components or disable optical and electronic systems depending on how the beam is employed.

For counter-drone missions, this approach can provide a useful complement to missiles and guns because a laser engagement does not require a conventional projectile for every target.

Part of a Layered Air-Defence Architecture

The 30 kW laser is being developed as part of India’s broader effort to create a more layered air-defence system capable of dealing with different classes of aerial threats.

DRDO has already demonstrated the integration of a laser-based directed-energy weapon within an Integrated Air Defence Weapon System, alongside indigenous missile systems. In August 2025, the organisation successfully tested an integrated configuration that brought together QRSAM, VSHORADS and a high-power laser-based DEW within a common air-defence architecture.

The role of the laser within such a structure is particularly relevant against drones, where conventional surface-to-air missiles may be disproportionately expensive compared with the target being engaged.

Production Model Expected Within a Year

According to the latest update, DRDO expects the first-of-production model to be ready within approximately one year after the production-partner process moves forward.

That model will not immediately represent full-scale deployment. It will first undergo additional trials intended to confirm range, reliability, repeatability and other operational parameters demanded by the eventual user.

This stage is important because a successful technology demonstrator and a production-standard military system have different requirements. A fielded weapon must be capable of repeated operation, transportation, maintenance and deployment under service conditions while maintaining consistent performance.

Industrialisation Becomes the Next Major Challenge

Moving the weapon into production will require Indian industry to manufacture and integrate highly specialised optical, electronic, thermal and precision-mechanical components.

A high-energy laser weapon depends on accurate beam combination, tracking and pointing systems, stable power supply, thermal management and software capable of maintaining the beam on a moving target long enough to achieve the desired effect.

The production partner will therefore have to reproduce technologies that have already been proven by DRDO while meeting military standards for reliability and repeatable manufacture.

DRDO Expands Industry Participation

The move comes as DRDO broadens its collaboration with Indian industry across multiple defence technologies.

At the VIMARSH DRDO–Industry Synergy Meet on September 15, 2026, the Ministry of Defence announced new measures intended to lower entry barriers for MSMEs and deep-tech startups while improving access to DRDO testing facilities, funding mechanisms and technology-transfer opportunities.

The 30 kW laser programme fits into this broader model in which DRDO develops critical technologies and subsequently works with domestic companies to establish manufacturing capacity.

Higher-Power Laser Systems Remain Under Development

The 30 kW system is not intended to represent the final stage of India’s directed-energy programme.

DRDO has already indicated that research is continuing on higher-power laser systems in the 50–100 kW class, which would allow engagement of larger and potentially more demanding aerial targets. The organisation is also pursuing complementary directed-energy technologies, including high-power microwave systems.

The experience gained from taking the 30 kW weapon into production will therefore have significance beyond this single system because it can help establish industrial capability for future generations of higher-energy weapons.

A New Phase for India’s Laser Weapon Programme

The latest announcement moves the 30 kW directed-energy weapon beyond the stage at which its principal achievement was a successful field demonstration.

The next challenge is industrial: selecting a production partner, producing the first manufacturing-standard system and proving that the weapon can deliver repeatable performance under service conditions.

With the Expression of Interest planned within six months and the first-of-production model targeted within roughly a year, India’s 30 kW laser programme is now entering the phase where an experimental capability begins the transition towards an operationally deployable defence system.

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References

Defence Research and Development Organisation — Official records on directed-energy weapon development and CHESS.

DRDO Newsletter, May 2025 — Official account of the Mk-II(A) Laser Directed Energy Weapon demonstration at NOAR, Kurnool.

Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Defence — Official release on the Integrated Air Defence Weapon System trial, August 24, 2025.

Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Defence — VIMARSH DRDO–Industry Synergy Meet, September 15, 2026.

BusinessLine — Interview with Dr. B.K. Das on the 30 kW directed-energy weapon production roadmap, September 2026.

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