Distinguished scientist P. Srihari, programme director of the Advanced Defence (AD) segment of India’s Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) programme, has been appointed director of the Research Centre Imarat (RCI), a premier DRDO laboratory in Hyderabad.
A graduate in mechanical engineering from Nagarjuna University (1990), Mr.Srihari completed his Master of Engineering from PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore, and later earned a Ph.D. from Osmania University, Hyderabad.
He joined the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in October 1992 at the Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE), Bengaluru. During his early years, he contributed to the development of the Multi-Mode Radar (MMR) for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme and played a key role in designing and developing a multilayer slotted array antenna.
The scientist moved to the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad, in December 2003, where he worked in the Liquid Propulsion Division. He led the design and development of the Divert and Attitude Control System (DACS) for interceptor missiles under India’s Ballistic Missile Defence programme. The Cold Gas Reaction Control System (RCS) developed under his leadership was successfully deployed in target missiles during interceptor trials.
In 2015, he joined the Advanced Defence programme and became part of the core team that successfully executed India’s Anti-Satellite (ASAT) mission, which intercepted a low-Earth orbit satellite in March 2019. DRDO appointed him as Project Director of the Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missile (MRSAM-IAF) project in 2019, a joint initiative with Israel Aerospace Industries, said a press release.
Published – September 15, 2026 07:14 pm IST
