Centre approves greenlit multiple defence proposals worth ₹79,000 crore

The government on Monday greenlit multiple proposals from the armed forces to buy or lease defence goods worth some ₹79,000 crore.

 

The Defence Acquisition Council, chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi, has approved the acceptance of necessity, a technical term that means an in-principle nod, for items (mostly domestically purchased) for the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. The AON acceptance does not guarantee large purchases that would have to be finally cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security, of which the defence minister is a member.

 

Approvals for the Indian Army include loitering munition that would be used for precision strikes of tactical targets, low-level light-weight radars to detect and track small-size, low-flying unmanned aerial systems, long-range guided rockets for the Pinaka system (multibarrel launcher) to improve its range and accuracy, and an advanced domestically made counter-drone system, according to a media statement from the defence ministry.

 

  

The drone detection and interdiction system Mk-II, “with enhanced range”, will protect the vital assets of the Indian Army in tactical battle areas and the hinterland, it said.

 

Clearances for the Indian Navy include the procurement of Bollard pull tugs that can assist ships and submarines in berthing, unberthing and manoeuvring in confined waters or harbours, and high-frequency software-defined radios that will further secure long-range communication during boarding and landing operations. The Navy’s requirement to lease high-altitude long range remotely piloted aircraft systems was accepted, so as to ensure continuous intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and credible maritime domain awareness in the Indian Ocean region, according to the statement.          

 

For the Indian Air Force (IAF), procurement of automatic take-off landing recording systems, Astra Mk-II missiles (beyond visual range), full-mission simulators and the Spice-1000 long-range guidance kits were approved. Induction of the automatic take-off landing recording system will “fill the gaps in the aerospace safety environment” by providing high-definition all-weather automatic recording of landings and take-offs. Astra Mk-II missiles, with enhanced range, will increase the capability of fighter jets to “neutralise adversary aircraft from (a) large standoff range”, the statement said.

 

Full-mission simulators for the light combat aircraft Tejas will augment pilot training in a cost-effective and safe manner, while Spice-1000 will enhance long-range precision strike capability of the IAF, it said.