We will fight and win the next war: Army chief

In anunequivocal push for inclusion of indigenous technology in the armed forcesArmy chief Bipin Rawat and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval said on Tuesdaythat it will give India an edge over its adversaries.

Rawat saidIndia will fight the next war with indigenous weapons and win it, and the timewas ripe to focus on future warfare. "We are looking at systems for futurewarfare. We have to start looking at development of cyber, space, laser,electronic and robotic technologies and artificial intelligence," Rawat said atthe 41st DRDO directors conference in New Delhi.

Lauding theDefence Research and Development Organisation, the Army chief said DRDO hasmade strides to ensure that the needs of the armed forces are met throughhome-grown solutions. He said while preparing systems for future warfare themilitary establishment and DRDO needs to focus on "non-contact warfare."

DefenceMinister Rajnath Singh, accompanied by the NSA and the three chiefs of thearmed forces paid tributes former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. Known as the'Missile Man', Kalam was considered the father of the country's missileprogramme.

NSA Doval said niche technologies have to be need-based and they can make India more secure. "We have to make a hard assessment of what we need to give us an edge over our adversaries," he said.

Doval said armies that were better equipped have always decided the destiny of mankind and India historically has always been a runner-up. "There is no trophy for the runner up. Either you are better than your adversaries or you are not there at all," the National Security Advisor added.

He alsoidentified two key factors that will shape global politics— technology andmoney. Doval said winning will depend on a country's strength in these twocategories. Of these, he said, technology is more important.