New Delhi: Union Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the “Mercury Thunder” – Phase III of Army Static Switched Communication Network (ASCON) on Wednesday.
 
Speaking at the inauguration, Mukherjee said “It gives me immense pleasure to inaugurate Mercury Thunder - The ASCON Phase 3, of the Indian Army. I am sure that this network will meet the requirements of a modern Indian Army and will facilitate the Indian Army’s march towards achieving Net-centricity."
 
"The art of warfare in twenty-first century has undergone a paradigm shift and transformed from being Platform Centric to Network Centric.
 
The Info-Structure i.e. Information Infrastructure is the entry ticket to Net-centric warfare. Today through Mercury Thunder we achieve a significant milestone in our march towards being a Network Centric Army," he added. 
 
Mercury Thunder has the unique distinction of being fully secure, nationwide, army owned, ATM/ISDN backbone network of unparalleled magnitude in the world.
 
For the first time, this network also incorporates a Satellite Overlay network which compliments and assures network availability. I am proud to note that the innovative and novel concept of Mobile Nodes to extend the reach of the network and for resuscitation of damaged Nodes will further enhance the availability of this network.
 
Mercury Thunder, the strategic backbone network of the Indian Army will not only create space for digitized battlefield but also support, facilitate and interconnect other Network-centric systems like Tactical C3I, C4I2, Tactical Communication Systems and others. Their entities can now be location independent and simply Plug and Play into the Information Infrastructure of Mercury Thunder.

© Ciol Bureau