India’s effort to establish a fully indigenous and interoperable software-defined radio (SDR) ecosystem has reached a significant milestone, with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) releasing the IRSA Security APIs on 10 November 2026.

The newly released application programming interfaces (APIs) complete a key element of the Indian Radio Software Architecture (IRSA) framework, enabling standardised security integration across military communication systems operating on a common software architecture.

The Security APIs provide developers and system integrators with uniform interfaces for implementing security functions within SDR platforms. Their introduction strengthens IRSA’s objective of creating an open, interoperable and future-ready communications environment for India’s armed forces.

IRSA 1.0 was formally released in October 2025 in collaboration with the Integrated Defence Staff and the three services. The framework represented India’s first nationally developed software standard for military software-defined radios and was designed to ensure compatibility across different platforms and users.

The initiative originated in 2021, when the requirement for a national SDR standard was identified as increasingly important for joint military operations. A DRDO-led core team subsequently began collecting operational requirements from the Army, Navy and Air Force in 2022, laying the foundation for a unified architecture that could support multiple radio platforms and waveforms.

Developed by DRDO’s Defence Electronics Applications Laboratory (DEAL), IRSA defines the technical foundations required for SDR interoperability. The architecture encompasses interfaces, APIs, execution environments and waveform portability, allowing software waveforms to be transferred across compliant radio platforms with minimal modification.

The standard is intended to reduce vendor dependence, simplify upgrades and encourage a broader domestic ecosystem of developers and manufacturers capable of building compatible systems for military users.

Director General Electronics and Communication Systems (ECS), Dr BK Das, has underlined the importance of the framework, stating that any SDR adopted by the armed forces must conform to IRSA standards and remain interoperable across all three services.

The operational foundation for IRSA is already taking shape. The Indian Navy currently operates a DRDO-developed tactical SDR, while the Indian Army’s manpack SDR variant, produced with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), has successfully completed field trials. Meanwhile, a new SDR designed for the Indian Air Force is expected to be available by the end of 2026.

With the release of the Security APIs, the IRSA ecosystem moves closer to its goal of delivering seamless, secure and service-wide communications, providing a common software foundation for the next generation of Indian military radio systems.

Agencies