What is the name of the man-portable air defence system developed by ‘DRDO’ to neutralize aerial threats ?

Correct — option (4), VSHORADS.

VSHORADS stands for Very Short Range Air Defence System. The Ministry of Defence, through PIB, describes it as a Man Portable Air Defence System (MANPADS), designed and developed indigenously by DRDO's Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad, with other DRDO laboratories and industry partners.

It is meant for neutralising low-altitude aerial threats at short ranges, and the missile and launcher are designed for easy portability. In trials announced on 1 February 2025, two field operators carried out weapon readiness, target acquisition and firing.

So the man-portable system is VSHORADS. The other three are DRDO surface-to-air missile systems fired from dedicated launchers, with radars and command systems in the case of Akash-NG and QRSAM.

The idea to remember: man-portable = VSHORADS; Akash-NG, QRSAM and VL-SRSAM are launcher-based systems.

Why the others are wrong

• (1)
  Akash-NG — Akash-NG (New Generation Akash) is a DRDO surface-to-air missile system, not a man-portable one. Its flight test of 12 January 2024 validated the whole weapon system: missile with indigenous RF seeker, launcher, Multi-Function Radar and command, control and communication system.

  PIB describes it as capable of intercepting high-speed, agile aerial threats.

• (2)
  QRSAM — QRSAM is the Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missile, developed by DRDO and flight-tested with the Indian Army. It uses a mobile launcher, surveillance and multi-function radars, and a fully automated command and control system.

  Its distinguishing feature is that it can search and track on the move and fire on a short halt — a vehicle-borne system, not a man-portable one.

• (3)
  VL-SRSAM — VL-SRSAM is the Vertical Launch Short Range Surface-to-Air Missile, flight-tested by DRDO and the Indian Navy. Its flight test of 12 September 2024 was fired from a land-based vertical launcher at a high-speed, low-altitude target.

  A missile fired from a vertical launcher is not a system a soldier carries.

Air defence systems can be told apart by range and by how they are deployed. At the short end, a Man Portable Air Defence System (MANPADS) is a missile system that soldiers can carry and fire.

VSHORADS is DRDO's MANPADS. Its missile uses a dual-thrust solid motor, a miniaturised Reaction Control System and integrated avionics, and the March 2023 test release adds a dual-band imaging infrared (IIR) seeker.

In October 2024 DRDO said the development of VSHORADS missiles was complete, and that two production agencies had been engaged as Development cum Production Partners.

Key facts

• VSHORADS = Very Short Range Air Defence System, a Man Portable Air Defence System developed by DRDO's Research Centre Imarat, Hyderabad.
• VSHORADS is meant for neutralising low-altitude aerial threats at short ranges and is propelled by a dual-thrust solid motor.
• VSHORADS was flight-tested at the Pokhran Field Firing Ranges, Rajasthan, on 3–4 October 2024; its tests reported in September 2022, March 2023, February 2024 and February 2025 were at Chandipur, Odisha.
• QRSAM (Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missile), tested with the Indian Army, can search and track on the move and fire on a short halt.
• VL-SRSAM (Vertical Launch Short Range Surface-to-Air Missile) was flight-tested by DRDO and the Indian Navy; Akash-NG is the New Generation Akash surface-to-air missile.

Common traps

• 'Short range' is in the full names of two options. VL-SRSAM is a vertically launched surface-to-air missile tested with the Navy; VSHORADS is the very short range, man-portable system.
• Akash-NG and Astra are both DRDO missiles but differ in role: Akash-NG is surface-to-air, while Astra is a beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile.
• The VSHORADS tests of 3–4 October 2024 were at Pokhran, Rajasthan, but the tests reported in September 2022, March 2023, February 2024 and February 2025 were at the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur. Tie the test site to its date.

UnlockIAS will link similar questions from RAS Pre 2023 and 2018 here once those papers are published on this site.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  In October 2024, DRDO flight-tested the Very Short Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) at –

  • (a)Integrated Test Range, Chandipur
  • (b)Pokhran Field Firing Ranges
  • (c)Abdul Kalam Island
  • (d)Mahajan Field Firing Range
  Answer(2) — PIB reported three VSHORADS flight-tests at the Pokhran Field Firing Ranges, Rajasthan, on 3 and 4 October 2024. Option (1) Chandipur hosted the tests reported in September 2022, March 2023, February 2024 and February 2025, and options (3) and (4) were not the site of the October 2024 tests.
• practice — not a real PYQ

  Match the DRDO air defence system with its feature : A. QRSAM – i. Man-portable B. VL-SRSAM – ii. Searches and tracks on the move, fires on short halt C. VSHORADS – iii. Vertical launch, flight-tested with the Indian Navy Codes :

  • (a)A-ii, B-iii, C-i
  • (b)A-iii, B-ii, C-i
  • (c)A-i, B-iii, C-ii
  • (d)A-ii, B-i, C-iii
  Answer(1) — QRSAM fires on short halt (A-ii), VL-SRSAM is vertically launched and was tested with the Navy (B-iii), and VSHORADS is man-portable (C-i). Option (2) swaps A and B, option (3) swaps A and C, and option (4) swaps B and C.