Ajey Lele

img

Group Captain (Dr) Ajey Lele (Retd.) is the Deputy Director General, MP-IDSA. Earlier, he was a Senior Fellow at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses and headed its Centre on Strategic Technologies. He started his professional career as an officer in the Indian Air Force in 1987 and took early retirement from the service to pursue his academic interests. He has a Masters degree in Physics from Pune University, and Masters and MPhil degrees in Defence and Strategic Studies from Madras University. He has done his doctorate from the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi. His specific areas of research include issues related to Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), Space Security and Strategic Technologies. He has contributed articles to various national and international journals, websites and newspapers. He has authored ten books and has also been an editor for seven books. He is a recipient of the K. Subrahmanyam Award (2013) which is conferred for outstanding contribution in the area of strategic and security studies.


Deputy Director General

Publication

Asia 2030: The Unfolding Future

  • Publisher: Lancer

This book is an effort to understand how the future will unfold in Asia 2030. This book has addressed issues ranging from air-power, cyber security, climate change, ballistic missile defence to geo-political and regional issues pertaining to East Asia, South East Asia and South Asia. Based primarily on the method of scenario building, this book is an attempt to discuss the future of critical issues related to security and the international relations of Asia in 2030.

  • ISBN 978-1-93550122-4 ,
  • Price: ?. 695/-
  • E-copy available

  • Published: 2010

Mission Mars: India’s Quest for the Red Planet

Publisher: Springer
ISBN 978-81-322-1521-9
Price: 49,99 €
The objective of the book is to find an answer to the rationale behind the human quest for the Mars exploration. As a comprehensive assessment for this query is undertaken, it is realized that the basic question ‘Why Mars?’ seeks various responses from technological, economic and geopolitical to strategic perspectives.

  • Published: 2013

Strategic Materials: A Resource Challenge for India

  • Publisher: Pentagon Press
    2014

There are a few minerals which are categorized as ‘strategic’ because of their importance for the industries and owing to natural and man-made difficulties in their procurement. There has been an attempt here to contextualize the importance of strategic materials from a national security perspective. This study presents a macro view with regard to India’s strategic minerals architecture and undertakes analysis to understand current and futuristic challenges and opportunities in this sector, and offers a few recommendations based on the assessment undertaken. Issues related to Rare Earth and new materials are also discussed.

  • ISBN 978-81-8274-786-9,
  • Price: ?. 795/-
  • E-copy available

  • Published: 2014

Institutions That Shaped Modern India: ISRO

  • Publisher: Rupa
An introduction to ISRO, the organization that took India to space.

The end of colonial rule was an important milestone worth celebrating, but what lay ahead was a long journey towards the making of modern India. The narrative of ‘modern India’ would be incomplete without the stories of institutions that helped shape India as we know it today.

This volume, part of a series on Institutions that Shaped Modern India, offers an in-depth introduction to one such institution—the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It tells the story of ISRO from its inception to present times. Capturing its history and its evolution, dotted with several achievements and some setbacks,  and offering deep insights into ISRO’s key projects—past, present and future—the book  is an ode to an institution that has been at the steering wheel of India’s journey into space and has played a seminal role in nation-building.

  • ISBN: 978-93-90356-56-0,
  • Price: ?. 395/-

  • Published: 2021

Quantum Technologies and Military Strategy

  • Publisher: Springer
This book is about the strategic relevance of quantum technologies. It debates the military-specific aspects of this technology. Various chapters of this book cohere around two specific themes. The first theme discusses the global pattern of ongoing civilian and military research on quantum computers, quantum cryptography, quantum communications and quantum internet. The second theme explicitly identifies the relevance of these technologies in the military domain and the possible nature of quantum technology-based weapons. This thread further debates on quantum (arms) race at a global level in general, and in the context of the USA and China, in particular. The book argues that the defence utility of these technologies is increasingly becoming obvious and is likely to change the nature of warfare in the future.
  • ISBN: 978-3-030-72720-8 ,
  • Price: EUR 89.99

  • Published: 2021

Henry Kissinger: The diplomat par excellence

Consultant, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp Capt AjeyLele’s article ‘Henry Kissinger: The diplomat par excellence’ has been published in Financial Express on 01 December 2023.

In the history of the US governments, he is the only individual till date, to hold a dual responsibility of national security adviser and secretary of state at the same time, says Gp Capt Lele.

Read Complete Article [+]

  • Published: 1 December, 2023

Securing Our World: Countering Chemical Terrorism in the Age of New Technologies

Consultant, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp Capt Ajey Lele’s article ‘Securing Our World: Countering Chemical Terrorism in the Age of New Technologies’ has been published by Society for the Study of Peace and Conflict (SSPC) on 29 November 2023.

The ongoing CSP-28 needs to address the issues related to terrorism and new technologies in a much-focussed manner. The new technologies have the potential to be used for malicious purposes. As such, there is a fear that ‘Algorithms’ will dictate the future of the human race. OPCW needs to ensure that ‘Algorithms’ and human or ‘Autonomous’ controlled vehicles are not getting misused for spreading chemical terror, says Gp Capt Lele.

Read Complete Article [+]

  • Published: 29 November, 2023

Understanding the Context and Concerns Over North Korea’s ‘Spy Satellite Launch’

Consultant, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp Capt Ajey Lele’s opinion piece ‘Understanding the Context and Concerns over North Korea's 'Spy Satellite Launch'’ has been published in ‘The Wire’ on 24 November 2023.

The US, South Korea and Japan condemned the launch, accusing Pyongyang of using ballistic missile technology in violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions. Can such a maximalist position against North Korea yield anything? asks Gp Capt Lele.

Read Complete Article [+]

  • Published: 24 November, 2023

Space Security and Global Cooperation

  • Publisher: Academic Foundation

For the last five decades artificial satellites are being used to perform diverse roles in astronomy, atmospheric studies and education. They have been found useful for reconnaissance, meteorology, navigation, communication and search & rescue.

  • ISBN 13-978-81-7188-741-5,
  • Price: ? 695

  • Published: 2008