Pak's Reckless Action Highlights India's Strategic Air Defence Build-Up

The heart of India's defence grid, and its strategic pivot towards self-reliance, is the indigenous Akash missile system.

- ASHISH SINGH

In the early hours of 10 May 2025, Saturday, residents in Amritsar woke up to a frightening sound—the hum of incoming Pakistani kamikaze drones intent on causing civilian casualties. However, within moments, the drones were neutralised by the Indian Army's quick-reaction air defence guns, safely intercepted above the skies of Punjab.

This was not just a tactical victory. It was symbolic of a deeper strategic narrative unfolding between two nuclear-armed neighbours. Ironically, Pakistan's attempt to escalate hostilities following India's precision strikes against terrorist infrastructure—codenamed Operation Sindoor—has inadvertently showcased India's decade-long effort to build one of the world's most formidable air defence ecosystems.

Pakistan's recent escalation reveals a troubling strategic shift. Struggling economically and diplomatically, it appears the Pakistani establishment has opted for increasingly risky hybrid warfare tactics, reminiscent of non-state actors like Hamas in West Asia.

By launching Byker YIHA III kamikaze drones armed with high-explosive payloads towards densely populated civilian areas, Islamabad has shown its readiness to blur ethical lines and risk international condemnation. Such reckless provocations expose not only desperation but a dangerous lowering of Pakistan's threshold for conflict.

Yet, these reckless provocations have simultaneously accentuated the hollowness of Pakistan's ageing military infrastructure. When Pakistan retaliated to Operation Sindoor-India's precise and measured destruction of nine terrorist camps located deep within Pakistani territory-it chose missile strikes aimed at strategic military installations across Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat. However, every missile was intercepted or neutralised. None reached its intended target.