Kozhikode: The Indian Air Force has proposed setting up an air defence centre in Kozhikode, said District Collector Snehil Kumar Singh. Such centres primarily house advanced radar systems capable of detecting missiles and other aerial threats, and are integral to the IAF’s Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS).

The IAF has requested a 40-acre plot in Chaliyam, now with the National Institute for Research and Development in Defence Shipbuilding (NIRDESH), a near-defunct institution under the Ministry of Defence. The site lies opposite Beypore Port, bordered by the Chaliyar river to the north, the Kadalundi river to the south, and the Conolly Canal to the east.

According to the Collector, the IAF sought the plot due to its strategic coastal location. However, reassigning the land requires coordination among multiple government agencies.

In January 2011, then Defence Minister A K Antony laid the foundation stone for the Rs 600-crore NIRDESH project, intended to help India achieve self-reliance in building warships and submarines.

NIRDESH, under the Department of Defence Production, included the Indian Navy, Coast Guard, DRDO, and the four defence shipbuilding PSUs -- Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL), Goa Shipyard Ltd, Hindustan Shipyard Ltd (Visakhapatnam), and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd (Kolkata) -- as its founding members.

However, the institute's progress stalled. It primarily ran shipbuilding training programmes in IITs and IISc, undertaking projects worth only Rs 50 lakh, which yielded little tangible outcome. Its last Deputy Director General reportedly worked out of the Chaliyam building for only 10 days during his five-and-a-half-year tenure.

In 2017, the Union Finance Ministry turned down a Rs 200-crore revival proposal. The institute has been kept afloat by funds from the four shipbuilding PSUs.

In September 2021, NIRDESH was restructured as a society, with the four PSUC shipyards and its members and the CMD of MDL serving as its chairman and president.

The IAF submitted its land request two months ago, and reports suggest it has also written to NIRDESH. "We had a discussion with all stakeholders," said Snehil Kumar Singh, the Collector. "We will have to get confirmation from the PSUs on whether they are still pursuing the NIRDESH project."

He said it will be up to the Union government to decide whether it wants NIRDESH or an Air Defence Centre at Chaliyam. Based on stakeholder inputs, the Collector plans to send a revised report to the state government.

To be sure, the IAF's request letter did not explicitly mention plans to set up an air defence centre. However, the possibility was raised during subsequent discussions. A defence spokesperson, while not confirming the request or the discussions, noted that Kozhikode lacks existing military infrastructure, meaning any such facility would require additional support systems. Civilian officials also hinted that the IAF might expand its infrastructure if granted additional land.

Though not tied to any specific threat, the proposal comes as India keeps a close watch on increasing Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean Region. Ports developed and operated or just funded by China -- from Gwadar in Pakistan and Hambantota in Sri Lanka to Chittagong in Bangladesh -- have raised strategic concerns in New Delhi.

An air defence centre equipped with radar systems -- if not interception capabilities -- would significantly enhance situational awareness and provide the IAF with a key vantage point along the southern coastal corridor.