Army Chief General MM Naravane received the first lot of Infantry Protected Mobility Vehicles (IPMVs) on Tuesday in Pune. The four-wheeled armoured combat vehicles have been jointly developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and a private company Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL).
It is the first commercial sale of a strategic platform based on a public-private partnership model. These IPMVs have been built on the strategic 8×8 Wheeled Armoured Platform (WhAP) indigenously designed and developed by TASL along with the Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (VRDE), a unit of DRDO. The IPMVs have been developed and manufactured at TASL’s Pune facility. In addition to supply, TASL will also provide 24×7 support to maintain the vehicles at the deployment locations, according to the press release.
The vehicles have undergone stringent field trials in deserts as well as high altitude areas by the Indian Army. The IPMVs also include TASL’s in-house designed and developed Remote Controlled Weapon Station with thermal sights and external add-on armour protection panels developed by the Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory of DRDO.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Sukaran Singh said “the successful delivery of IPMVs is a major milestone for TASL and the Indian defence manufacturing sector as it marks the first commercial sale of a strategic platform that has been co-developed by DRDO and a private player. TASL has achieved this milestone after withstanding the challenges and delays caused by the pandemic, which makes the achievement even more remarkable for us.”
Team BharatShakti
