Institutions that Shaped Modern India- Drdo

The end of colonial rule was an important milestone worth celebrating, but what lay ahead was a long journey towards the making of modern India. The narrative of modern India' would be incomplete without the stories of institutions that helped shape India as we know it today.

This book, part of a series on Institutions That Shaped Modern India, offers an in-depth introduction to one such institution—the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It engagingly tells the story of DRDO from its inception to present times. Capturing its history and its evolution, dotted with several remarkable achievements and some equally critical challenges, and offering thought-provoking suggestions too, this book is an ode to an institution that has been a crucial contributor to India's defence needs, equipping it with state-of-the-art indigenous defence technologies, and has played a seminal role in nation-building.

Ravi Kumar Gupta is an independent writer and TV commentator on matters related to the role of science and technology in national security, contributing on diverse topics that include defence, security, science, technology, nation-building and self-reliance. He served at DRDO as a DRDS scientist for over 35 years and superannuated in May 2015 as Scientist 'G' and Director Public Interface at the DRDO headquarters.

Standing atop Mount Everest made Arunima Sinha, the world's first female amputee to climb the peak, famous. What made her an inspiration, especially for the youth, was the way she struggled against insurmountable challenges—she lay on the railway tracks with both her legs crushed, after having been thrown out of a moving train for resisting intimidation, and was presumed eliminated, but she kept herself alive and alert by counting over 40 passing trains. She later went on to climb to the top of the world.

Be it an inspiring individual or an institution, the inspiration emanates from the saga of achieving success against all odds, struggles and insurmountable challenges. One such inspiring institution is the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), India's premier research and development (R&D) organization with a vision to empower the nation with state-of-the-art indigenous defence technologies and systems. It came into existence as DRDO on the first day of 1958, through the merging of several heterogeneous establishments with the Defence Science Organisation (DSO). An inspiration for the youth and the pride of the country's citizens, DRDO is a dream destination for innovative young minds aspiring to serve the nation with their skills in science and technology (S&T).