When embedded in armoured fighting vehicles or infantry combat clothing, a BMS becomes the basic level of the tactical C4I network.
Internal unrest, together with global and regional disturbances, could give rise to a horde of violence and conflicts posing serious threat to the security and stability in India’s neighbourhood. Ethnic and sectarian violence, insurgencies, narcotics/ drug wars, illegal immigration, religious fundamentalism, terrorism (local and international), territorial disputes over unsettled boundaries, conflicts due to great power rivalries, proliferation of nuclear weapons, WMD falling into the hands of terrorists, wars to secure resource areas, and piracy and terrorism at sea, on land and in the air are a few of the portended disasters.
India, therefore, has to adopt a more pragmatic approach towards its military capabilities in the future. The differing nature of the above conflicts and emerging trends in the battlefield environment requires flexibility, mobility, quick-response capability and exploitation of the technology spectrum to secure war winning advantages in future military endeavours.
Modern technology
Historically, countless examples illustrate that technology is one of the principle factors that drives change in the method of war fighting and India is facing an entirely new technology era, generated through advancements in the field of miniaturisation, digitisation, material science, bio-technology, sensor technology, stealth, communications and information technology. India needs to integrate new technologies as warfighting systems. The dominant technology trends are in the field of long range precision firepower, integrative technologies, stealth technologies, and Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance technologies.
Advances in the field of communications, computers, command & control, information and interoperability (C4I2) have provided military capabilities to view the battle space as one composite whole and thus be tackled jointly or singly by any weapon of any service which is within range. Inter-operability will be the essence for the different C4I2 systems of the three services (army, navy and the air force). Network-enabled warfare, at the unit level, has certain distinct characteristics that need to be understood to comprehend the impending change in the method of war waging at the tactical levels of a battalion/regimental level battle/combat group.
General architecture
A Battle Management System (BMS) is designed for the battalion/regimental level battle or combat group. It enables operational planning, establishes a common language across all combat elements and allocates boundaries and areas of responsibility. It automatically updates the intelligence within the battle/combat group and distributes target information and alerts to all concerned. Thus, it enables flexible planning and operation. When integrated with on-board networked computers, every platform becomes a networked sensor and a shooter. Weapons can be slaved by remote users, to remote sensors, therefore, empowering the system with more flexibility. This ensures faster tempo of operations, and effective employment and distribution of firepower without risking fratricide. A BMS integrates built-in navigation and communications functions which are fully integrated with the platform, on-board sensors and weapons.
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