India’s first unmanned, remotely operated tank has been successfully developed by DRDO. Muntra, the tank which is capable of surveillance, mine detection and reconnaissance has been developed and tested for the Army by Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE) in Avadi.  

It has been designed for use in areas with nuclear and bio threats. Though it has been developed for the army, the paramilitary is interested to use them in Naxal-hit areas.                         

An exhibition - Science for Soldiers - organised by DRDO as a tribute to former President APJ Abdul Kalam was held at CVRDE in Avadi where two such unmanned vehicles designed like an armoured tank were showcased.

Muntra-S is the country's first tracked unmanned ground vehicle which will assist in unmanned surveillance missions while Muntra-M is for detecting mines. Another tank, Muntra-N is designed for use in areas where there is a risk of nuclear radiation or bio weapons.

The tank has been successfully tested at Mahajan field firing range in Rajasthan under dusty desert conditions where temperatures escalated to  52 C. The vehicle was comfortably tele-operated by the army without any problem. It has surveillance radar, an integrated camera along with laser range finder which can be used to spy on ground target 15km away – which means that it can detect anything on the ground, from crawling men to heavy vehicles.