According to an official statement, the Defence Ministry authorised the acquisition of arms and military equipment worth Rs 7,965-crore, including 12 light utility helicopters from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
The acquisition proposals were confirmed at a meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the ministry’s highest decision-making body on the matter. Besides receiving the offer to buy 12 helicopters, the DAC passed the Lynx U2 naval gunfire control system from Bharat Electronics Limited to improve naval warships’ tracking and engagement abilities, the ministry’s statement said.
On Tuesday, The DAC also signed “mid-life upgradation of Dornier aircraft” by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited to enhance the naval capacity of maritime surveillance and coastal monitoring, it stated.
“As a further impetus to ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ (self-reliant India), a global procurement case of naval guns has been foreclosed with these guns’ quantity added to the upgraded super rapid gun mount (SRGM) being manufactured by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL),” it noted. These SRGMs contribute niche abilities to engage quick manoeuvring targets using controlled munitions and range extensions and are to be implemented on the warships of the Indian Navy, the statement said.
“The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), in its meeting of November 2, 2021, held under the chairmanship of Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh, accorded Acceptance of Necessity for capital acquisition proposals for modernisation and operational needs of the armed forces amounting to Rs 7,965 crore,” it noted.
According to the statement, all these projects are under ‘Make in India’, focusing on the country’s design, development, and manufacturing.
The military equipment is obtained when the Indian armed forces are locked in a bitter border row with China in eastern Ladakh.
