NEW DELHI: The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), at a joint meeting held recently, have decided to deploy anti-drone systems at all major and minor civil airports in view of a possible war-like situation emerging in future, officials said on Sunday.

Initially, it was decided to place the system at major airports like Delhi, Mumbai, Amritsar, Jammu and Srinagar, as the decision was made in view of the experience gathered during ‘Operation Sindoor’ and due to global military escalations and the increased use of drones in warfare.

It is learnt from the officials that the anti-drone equipment installed at the aviation infrastructure facilities will be able to thwart any possible attack using rogue drones, which have emerged as effective tools for new-age warfare.

Notably, the government of India plans to install the anti-drone systems for the first time at airports, which deal only with passenger aircraft.

The decision has been arrived at after multiple high-level meetings, the officials said, adding that though the MHA has been overseeing the project, a committee has been constituted by the BCAS, which has members drawn from the aviation regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), responsible for securing airports, and other stakeholders.

The officials said that the modalities and specifications of the equipment are currently being looked into, and once everything is finalised, the MHA will coordinate with the Ministry of Civil Aviation in implementing and commissioning the project.