In an effort to provide modern weapons and protection gear to the frontline troops, the Defence Ministry on Tuesday approved procurement proposals worth Rs 28, 732 crore for rifles, bulletproof jackets and drones.
With tension persisting at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh for the last two years, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) gave the go ahead for buying four lakh automatic rifles for the soldiers deployed all along the 4,000-km long border stretching from Ladakh in the west to Arunachal Pradesh in the east. The troops guarding the 750-km long Line of Control (LoC) will also be equipped with these rifles.
The DAC chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh here also gave the go ahead for procurement of armed drones. The DAC is the apex body to approve projected requirements of the armed forces.
Officials said the main focus of the procurements was on self-reliance and most of the weapons will come under Buy (Indian IDDM) and Buy (Indian) categories giving a further boost to “atmanirbharta.”
Considering the demand of enhanced protection against the threat of enemy snipers to Indian troops deployed along the LoC in Jammu & Kashmir, and in close combat operations in counter-terrorism scenario, the DAC gave the nod for bulletproof jackets with Indian Standard BIS VI level of protection.
To combat the current complex paradigm of conventional and hybrid warfare and counter-terrorism at the LAC and other borders, including the LoC, the DAC approved the induction of four lakh close quarter battle carbines.
This is set to provide a major impetus to the small arms manufacturing industry in India and enhance atmanirbharta in small arms, they said.
As regards unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), they said in the recent conflicts across the world, drone technology proved to be a force multiplier in military operations.
Accordingly, to augment the Indian Army’s capability in modern warfare, the DAC gave the nod for procurement of Autonomous Surveillance and Armed Drone Swarms under Buy (Indian-IDDM) category.
The apex body also approved the Navy’s proposal to procure an upgraded 1,250KW capacity Marine Gas Turbine Generator for power generation application onboard Kolkata class of ships through Indian Industry. This will give a major boost to the indigenous manufacturing of gas turbine generators.
In order to enhance the security in the coastal region of our Country, the DAC also approved the proposal of procurement of 14 Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs) for the Indian Coast Guard.
Meanwhile, the Defence Ministry said it has fast-tracked the process of indigenisation of software-defined radios (SDRs) at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Institute of Technology in Kanpur. The process was speeded up to fulfill the increasing demand by the Armed Forces across a broad spectrum of operations, it said.
“Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar, while according high priority to the indigenisation of SDR technology, stated that it will be an important milestone towards achieving the goals of Aatmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India) in the field of secured radiocommunication,” the Ministry’s statement noted.
A draft project report has been formulated by the DRDO towards indigenous development of SDR with roadmaps and timelines, it mentioned. The SDRs are used by the Indian armed forces to ensure secure communications.