Historical Background

The beginning of the Defence Research & Development Establishment (DRDE) goes back to 1947. The then Maharaja of Gwalior, Jiwaji Rao Scindia, the ruler of the Gwalior state, created a laboratory named Jiwaji Industrial Research Laboratory (JIRL). The JIRL was inaugurated by the then Governor-General of India Lord Earl Mountbatten on December 28, 1947. The JIRL was taken over by Ministry of Defence, Government of India on November 1963. Till 1972, it was under the administrative control of Defence Research Laboratory (Materials), Kanpur. After that in 1973, it was made a full-fledged independent unit as Defence Research & Development Establishment (DRDE).