Defense Minister Rajnath Singh approves Rs 7,800 crore procurement for Army equipment

New Delhi: The Defense Ministry has authorized the purchase of new Army equipment, including Navy helicopters and special weaponry. Rajnath Singh, the Defense Minister, has decided to spend around Rs 7800 crore on these items. The Defense Ministry approved procurement bids worth over Rs 7,800 crore on Thursday, including the purchase of an electronic warfare suite for Mi-17 V5 helicopters. The proposals were approved by the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC), which is headed by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh. The DAC approved plans include the acquisition of 7.62x51 mm Light Machine Gun (LMG) and weapons for Indian Navy MH-60R helicopters.

As per the statement, "The DAC has approved the procurement and deployment of an Electronic Warfare (EW) suite on Mi-17 V5 helicopters under the Indian-IDDM category to improve the efficiency of the Indian Air Force. The EW suit will be supplied by Bharat Electronics Limited. The ministry stated, In addition, the DAC also approved the procurement of ground-based autonomous systems for mechanized infantry and armored regiments. This will help with a range of operations in a battle zone, such as unmanned surveillance, ammunition, fuel, and spare parts supply, and casualty evacuation.

According to the statement, the DAC also approved plans for the procurement of a 7.62x51 mm LMG and a bridge-laying tank (BLT) because the induction of the LMG will enhance the combat capability of the infantry forces and the BLT will increase the mobility of mechanized forces. It is also said in the statement that under project 'Shakti', the Indian Army has also been given approval to purchase robust computers and tablets. All of these purchases will be made from indigenous vendors only. Furthermore, the DAC agreed to the acquisition of the weapon to improve the operating capability of the Indian Navy's MH-60R helicopters.