From submarine hunter planes for the Navy to air defence guns for the Army to upgrading warships, India on Tuesday cleared the decks for a slew of projects worth at least Rs 30,000 crore to plug gaps in the military’s capabilities.
The defence acquisition council (DAC) accepted the necessity for replacing the army’s L-70 and Zu-23 air defence guns with modern guns at the cost of Rs 16,900 crore to bolster its air defence capabilities, a defence ministry official said.
The Army will go in for 428 guns under the Buy and Make category. The DAC’s ‘acceptance of necessity’ for weapons and systems is the first step towards making proposed procurements.
The DAC set the ball rolling for a follow-on order for four more Boeing P-8I long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft worth Rs 4,380 crore. It also gave its go-ahead to a Rs 2,900-crore project to equip six warships with advanced weapons and radars as and when they undergo a mid-life upgrade.
The DAC, headed by defence minister Manohar Parrikar, also cleared the way for replacing four old survey vessels of the navy with new ones under a Rs 2,324-crore project, installing new radars on six warships for Rs 440 crore and combat management systems on warships for Rs 624 crore.
{{/usCountry}}The DAC, headed by defence minister Manohar Parrikar, also cleared the way for replacing four old survey vessels of the navy with new ones under a Rs 2,324-crore project, installing new radars on six warships for Rs 440 crore and combat management systems on warships for Rs 624 crore.
{{/usCountry}}The council gave its go-ahead for buying 110 microlight aircraft and a simulator for upgraded Mirage-2000 fighters.