MSME vendors join defence industry
The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) has approved capital acquisition of various platforms and equipment required by the Indian Armed Forces for an approximate cost of Rs.38,900 crore.
Focused on indigenous design and development, the approvals include acquisitions from Indian industry of Rs.31,130 crore.
The equipment, to be manufactured in India, involves the Indian defence industry with the participation of several MSMEs as prime-tier vendors, said the Defence Ministry on 2 July 2020.
The indigenous content in some of these projects is up to 80 per cent of the project cost.
A large number of these projects have been made possible due to Transfer-of-Technology (ToT) by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to the indigenous industry.
These include Pinaka ammunitions, BMP armament upgrades and software-defined radios for the Indian Army, Long Range Land Attack Cruise Missile Systems and Astra Missiles for the Indian Navy and Indian Air Force (IAF). The cost of these design and development proposals is in the range of Rs.20,400 crore.
Acquisition of new and additional missile systems will add to the firepower of three Services. While the acquisition of Pinaka missile systems will enable raising additional regiments over and above the ones already inducted, the addition of Long-Range Land Attack Missile Systems having a firing range of 1,000-km to the existing arsenal will bolster the attack capabilities of the Navy and the Air Force.
Similarly, induction of Astra Missiles having Beyond Visual Range capability will serve as a force multiplier and immensely add to the strike capability of the Navy and Air Force.
Further, addressing the long-felt need of the IAF to increase its fighter squadrons, the DAC has also approved the proposal for procurement of 21 MIG-29 along with upgradation of existing 59 MIG-29 aircraft and procurement of 12 Su-30 MKI aircraft.
While the MIG 29 procurement and upgradation from Russia is estimated to cost Rs.7,418 crore, the Su-30 MKI will be procured from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) at an estimated cost of Rs.10,730 crore. #defence #technology #russia #makeinindia /fiinews.com
