Defence ministry clears Rs 1.1 lakh crore hardware buys

The defence ministry on Monday approved acquisition of military hardware for the three services, including radars, advanced light helicopters and mechanical mine layers at an estimated cost of Rs 1.10 lakh crore to boost the military’s overall combat prowess.

The procurement proposals were cleared by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

“The DAC accorded Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) that is in-principle administrative approval, to various acquisition proposals of the defence forces at an estimated cost of about Rs 1,10,000 crore,” the ministry said.

“For the Indian Army, approval was granted for the procurement of Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) recce vehicles, high mobility vehicles (HMVs), self-propelled mechanical mine layers (MML), advanced light helicopters (ALHs), trawl tanks and Sarvatra bridge system,” it said.

The CBRN recce vehicles will be capable of detecting, identifying, monitoring and marking of areas contaminated with CBRN agents.

The HMVs are expected to enhance operational capabilities, logistic support and mobility in challenging terrains. “The ALHs will execute complex missions across all terrains and operational situations for the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force.

The trawl tanks and bridge system will be utilised to provide composite crossings to fighting formations during operations in varied terrains,” the ministry said.

For the Indian Navy, AoN was accorded for the procurement of Arudhra radars, design and development and subsequent procurement of Marine Gas Turbines (MGT).

Arudhra radars will replace the existing Air Route surveillance radars at various Naval Air Stations, and MGT, a warship propulsion system, is expected to reduce dependency on foreign vendors.

For the Indian Air Force, approval was granted to various proposals to enhance the war-fighting capability of fighters, transports and helicopters. Approval was accorded for procuring Ground-Based Multi-Purpose Jammer (GBMPJ) and installing Defence Forces Secure Access Card system, according to the ministry.

The GBMPJ will provide effective jamming against radars of adversaries, it said in a statement.

Of the total AoNs accorded, approximately 98 per cent of procurements will be made from the Indian industry, it added.