March 12, 2023

With the threat of terror drones looming large, India needs to urgently evolve a holistic cross-border drone monitoring and interception capability to safeguard its national security The skies over India are becoming battlegrounds for a new kind of threat: terror drones. In the latest incident, Indian security forces recovered an unmanned infiltrating Chinese-made DJI Matrice 300 RTK quadcopter that had infiltrated from Pakistan into the Indian state of Punjab. The discovery of this high-end drone, worth $13,700, highlights the increasing use of advanced aerial technology by nefarious actors across borders. Earlier this week, a drone operated by Pakistan violated Indian airspace from across the international border before being shot down in Rajasthan’s Sriganganagar sector. The Indian Border Security Force recovered five packages of purported narcotics from the drone wreckage. In another illicit cross-border drone activity incident, police retrieved two unassembled improvised explosive devices with detonators, two Chinese-made pistols, four magazines with 60 rounds, and half a million Indian rupees dropped by a terror drone controlled from Pakistan in November last year. These are not isolated instances; the number of “terror drones” flown by Pakistan and used for hostile reconnaissance, drug, weapon, explosive, and ammunition smuggling into India has increased fourfold in Punjab alone since the beginning of 2023. Over the past three weeks, Indian security forces stationed along India’s international border states, particularly Punjab, Rajasthan, and Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), have intercepted more than a dozen terror drones launched from Pakistan. With the threat of terror drones looming large, India needs to urgently evolve a comprehensive cross-border drone monitoring and interception capability to safeguard its national security. In response to this escalating threat, India’s security and law enforcement agencies across India’s bordering states have aggressively enhanced surveillance to deal with the spike in these deleterious infiltrations from across the border. This rapid uptick in terror drone droppings  from Pakistan highlights the need for a more rigorous countrywide strategy to safeguard India’s national security. The sordid reality of Pakistan’s involvement in narco-terrorism is a well-known fact. This is not hearsay but has been acknowledged by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (EUROPOL), and even at global forums and trade unions such as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and EU’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP+). Earlier last year, FATF demanded that Pakistan prove that it had taken decisive measures against terrorism to avoid being consigned to the dreaded FATF grey list yet again. Pakistan government’s backing for terrorism has also been scrutinised recently, particularly during its attempt to revive a 2019 bailout agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Grave concerns over the use of the bailout money had been raised in the context of Pakistan’s state sponsoring of terrorism. Pakistan, with the sinister intention of waging asymmetrical warfare against Indians by fostering secessionism and terrorism in India, has been notorious for its lack of development policies, an acute disregard for the well-being of its citizens, and its concentration of efforts on fomenting jihadist extremism and sponsoring terrorism against India, which has led to its ultimate downfall. The country has become a classic case study for the world to see as an example of how states that harbour and endorse extremism, sponsor terrorism, and lack coherent plans for their people’s growth and development are bound to fail. Concerningly, the increasing and escalating use of terror drones launched from Pakistan against India epitomises the mindset of the country’s deep state and army. Alarmingly, Pakistan seems to have decided to persist in diverting its valuable resources towards supporting terror, thereby continuing to nurture the monster of terrorism that it created, even though it has already bankrupted the country. By resorting to narco-terrorism and promoting violent extremism to destabilise India, and significantly to weaken its youth, Pakistan is exposing itself to further extreme scrutiny from its financial backers, organisations, unions and nations that greatly benefit it. Pakistan has active loans from international lending agencies such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), among others. It is also a partner in the Paris Pact Initiative, which seeks to combat opiate trafficking, consumption and related issues along the Afghan trafficking routes. More so, Pakistan is a beneficiary to Europe’s preferential tariff programmes, including the GSP+. However, Pakistan’s blatant support for organised crime, extremism and terrorism has seriously undermined its credibility. As a result, these agencies and entities have imposed new stringent rectification requirements on Pakistan’s support for terrorism and extremism to maintain their support. At this critical juncture, it is essential for the international community to recognise the severity and consequences of Pakistan’s aggression by use of “terror drones” against India. Its obstinate commitment to pursue this perilous path endangers not only regional but also global peace and security. More-so, the global community should also pay attention to countries that enable and endorse Pakistan’s actions towards this direction. China’s role  For example, Pakistan’s all-weather friend, the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) ruled China, which boasts a friendship “higher than the Himalayas, deeper than the ocean, sweeter than honey, and stronger than steel” with Pakistan. Recent recoveries of Pakistan-operated terror drones and dropped weapons in Indian territory provide tangible physical evidence of Chinese technology, equipment, and weaponry being used for narco-terror and related terrorist activities in India. A significant proportion of drones that Pakistan employs for cross-border operations in India are supplied by the Chinese firm, SZ DJI Technology Co. Ltd, commonly referred to as DJI. In December 2020, the US government listed DJI on a trade-restricted list due to concerns about its connections to the (CPC) government. It is worth noting that some of the batteries used to power these drones are manufactured by a company based in Karachi, Pakistan. Despite the CPC’s public declarations of unwavering commitment to combat international terrorism, doubts have arisen due to its persistent support for Pakistan and treatment of Uyghur Muslims. Nevertheless,