Under the Make in India scheme of the Ministry of Defence, Odisha-based Anadrone System has bagged a contract to supply advanced Defence equipments to the Indian Army and Air Force.
The contract to supply 125 Manoeuvrable Expendable Aerial Targets (MEATs) and associated equipments worth Rs 96 crore under the Make in India II category, which is meant for research and development projects, funded by the industry with an indigenous content of over 50% was signed last week.
Notably, companies like Larsen and Toubro also pitched for this deal. The Shikra MEAT system being manufactured by Anadrone System is a localised version of the Banshee Jet 40 system that has earlier been imported by the armed forces.
The company has collaborated with a UK-based Defence tech company to build systems for air defence training from simple, low-performance model aeroplane targets through maneuverable targets to sophisticated high subsonic and supersonic systems. It has an R&D and manufacturing unit located strategically at the Tata Steel SEZ, Gopalpur.
Brig (Retd) LC Patnaik said that such initiatives would attract more MSMEs to participate in the nation’s Defence projects and promote the indigenous Defence manufacturing sector.
Company MD Anant Bhalotia appreciated the State Government’s Single Window portal GO SWIFT and stressed the future expansions of the company in Odisha.
The Anadrone System provided key inputs while drafting the Odisha Aerospace and Defence Manufacturing Policy, 2018 and it was also part of Odisha’s delegation to the UK in 2016.