Indian Army Plans New Unit 'OPFOR' For Realistic Military Exercises - Here's All About It

The Indian Army is reportedly in the process of establishing a new unit called OPFOR, or "opposing forces," aimed at simulating adversarial roles during military exercises and wargame training.

The plans for OPFOR are presently in the discussion phase and are awaiting final approval from the Army's top leadership, Indian Express reported citing senior officials aware of the development.

The decision to create this unit stemmed from discussions during the Army Commanders’ Conference held last month, where senior officers deliberated on enhancing combat potential through realistic wargaming and training scenarios.

Similar concepts are already in use in countries like the United States.

The proposed OPFOR unit will be formed from existing military units and will mirror the weapons, operating methods, and tactics of potential adversaries.

This approach aims to provide regular troops with scenarios closely resembling actual wartime conditions.

Traditionally, military exercises divide participating troops into "blue land" and "red/yellow land," with the latter representing adversarial forces.

Currently, the Army provides courses on adversarial force roles and tactics primarily to officers.

However, the introduction of OPFOR is expected to democratise this training, allowing all participating troops to gain firsthand experience during on-ground exercises.

The Army already has a REDFOR (red forces) unit within its training command, ARTRAC, which evaluates exercises and wargame plans using paper and sand model exercises.

Moreover, various commands operate war centres that utilise computer-generated models and artificial intelligence to test different scenarios.

By implementing OPFOR, the Army seeks to further enhance its wargaming capabilities, enabling a comprehensive assessment of participating formations' strengths and weaknesses during military exercises.

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