On March 12, 2025, in a significant move to strengthen India’s indigenous defence capabilities, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a capital acquisition contract with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Ghaziabad, for the procurement of the Low-level Transportable Radar (LLTR), also known as Ashwini. The contract, valued at Rs 2,906 crore, was formalized in the presence of Defence Secretary Shri Rajesh Kumar Singh.
The LLTR (Ashwini) is an advanced radar system indigenously designed and developed by the Electronics & Radar Development Establishment (LRDE), a premier laboratory under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Based on revolutionary solid-state technology, the LLTR (Ashwini) is an active electronically scanned phased array radar (AESA). Designed to identify and monitor a broad spectrum of aerial hazards, including: Fighter planes with high speed, Slowly moving targets including helicopters and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Other low-flying objects challenging traditional radar systems
The advanced features of the radar make it a major help for improving the operational readiness of the Indian Air Force (IAF). Its transportable design guarantees adaptability and quick deployment in many environments, therefore enabling it to be a flexible instrument for modern military situations.
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The system has an instrumented range of 200 km and is able to detect 2 sqm RCS targets as far as 150 km in range with the altitude coverage from 30 meters to 15 km. The radar operates either in Staring or Rotation Mode. In rotation mode, the antenna rotates at 7.5 / 15 rpm with surveillance coverage of 360°.
in azimuth and 40° in elevation. In the staring mode of operation, the antenna stares in a specified azimuth with surveillance coverage of ±60° in azimuth and 40° in elevation. The radar is based on a solid-state active aperture phased array with digital beam forming and has electronic scanning capability in both azimuth and elevation. The coverage is attained using a wide transmit beam and multiple receive beams in both azimuth and elevation.
Its acquisition will significantly enhance the operational preparedness of the Indian Air Force. The program is a major step towards achieving self-reliance in defence manufacturing by reducing dependency on foreign-origin equipment manufacturers, besides acting as a catalyst for the development of defence industrial ecosystem in the country.
