The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, has given its accent to proposals worth Rs 7,800 crore to enhance the operational capabilities of the Indian Armed Forces. All of these procurements, which include Electronic Warfare (EW) Suite on Mi-17 V5 helicopters, light machine guns, and Bridge Laying Tank, will be sourced from indigenous vendors only, the Ministry said in a release on Thursday.
“To enhance the efficiency of the Indian Air Force, the DAC has granted AoN for procurement and installation of Electronic Warfare (EW) Suite on Mi-17 V5 Helicopters under Buy (Indian-IDDM) category, which will enhance better survivability of Helicopters,” the release said. The EW Suite will be procured from Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL).
The DAC has also accorded AoN to procure a Ground-Based Autonomous System for mechanised infantry and armoured regiments, enabling various operations like unmanned surveillance, logistic delivery of ammunition, fuel and spares and casualty evacuation on the battlefield, according to the official release.
The DAC approved procuring a 7.62×51 mm light machine gun (LMG) and bridge-laying tank (BLT). While induction of LMG will enhance the fighting capabilities of infantry forces, the induction of BLT will result in faster movement of Mechanised Forces, the MoD said.
In addition, it also approved the procurement of ruggedised laptops and tablets for the Indian Army under Project Shakti.
“To enhance the operational capability of the MH-60R Helicopters of the Indian Navy, the DAC has accorded AoN for procurement of weapons for the same,” the MoD said. All these procurements will be sourced from Indigenous vendors only.
Team Bharatshakti.in
