The Indian Army recently said it has sealed a deal with a Bengaluru-based company to procure the indigenously-developed “tactical LAN radio”.

Why in the news?

• It is the second contract that the Army has firmed up under the framework of Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX).

About Tactical LAN Radio:

• It is a state-of-the-art high-bandwidth backhaul wireless radio equipment for the provisioning of reliable and failsafe communication.
• The LAN radio solution offers an enhanced range of communication and embedded frequency hopping mechanism to preclude chances of interception.
• It provides long-range point-to-multipoint high-bandwidth communication.
• The system also incorporates enhanced safety features and can operate continuously for 48 hours on a single-set basis, without any breakdown.

What is iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence)?

• It is the flagship initiative of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), launched in April 2018.
• Aim: To achieve self-reliance and foster innovation and technology development in Defence and Aerospace by engaging Industries including MSMEs, start-ups, individual innovators, R&D institutes and academia.
• iDEX has partnered with leading incubators in the country to provide hand holding, technical support and guidance to the winners of iDEX challenges.
• iDEX will be funded and managed by a ‘Defence Innovation Organization (DIO)’ which has been formed as a ‘not for profit companyas per Section 8 of the Companies Act 2013 by the two founder members, i.e., Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) – HAL & BEL.
• iDEX will function as the executive arm of DIO, carrying out all the required activities, while DIO will provide high-level policy guidance to iDEX. 
• Under iDEX, financial support is provided to start-ups/MSMEs/individual innovators, and Partner Incubators through DIO.