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Home / Blueprint Defence Magazine / Reports / Old war, new plan: Experts urge policy consolidation on unconventional combat

Old war, new plan: Experts urge policy consolidation on unconventional combat

As India strengthens its defence capabilities with AI and frontier technology, the armed forces face a rapidly evolving landscape of information warfare, cyber threats, and autonomous combat systems

19 min read | Updated On : Aug 31 2025 | 9:21 PM IST
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Satarupa BhattacharjyaSatarupa Bhattacharjya
Bhaswar KumarBhaswar Kumar
Martand MishraMartand Mishra
modern warfare, modern war, cyber attack, artificial intelligence, robotics

Representational image (Imaging: Ajaya Mohanty)

The Indian Army used information warfare during Operation Sindoor. Its effort was recently acknowledged by the government. This unit of the army, formally called the Additional Directorate General of Strategic Communications since 2020, started as a publicity cell in 1985, and was known by other names between 1994 and 2004.  By many accounts, while India demonstrated its military capability in the conflict over May 7-10, it lost the perception battle to Pakistan, a smaller adversary, at least initially. Chinese-assisted information warfare that Pakistan used showed better results for that country among the international news audience.  India is infusing frontier

Written By

Satarupa Bhattacharjya

Satarupa BhattacharjyaSatarupa Bhattacharjya is a journalist with 25 years of work experience in India, China and Sri Lanka. She covered politics, government and policy in the past. Now, she writes on defence and geopolitics.

Bhaswar Kumar

Bhaswar KumarBhaswar Kumar has over seven years of experience in journalism. He has written on India Inc, corporate governance, government policy, and economic data. Currently, he covers defence, security and geopolitics, focusing on defence procurement policies, defence and aerospace majors, and developments in India’s neighbourhood.

Martand Mishra

Martand MishraMartand Mishra has started his reporting career with defence coverage. He is a graduate of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. He enjoys reading books on defence, history and biographies.

First Published: Aug 31 2025 | 9:18 PM IST

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artificial intelligence and robotics Defence plan Indian defence industry