From Anti-Tank Guided Missiles to Warships: DAC approves Rs 76,390-crore procurement boost to Indian firms
The clarion call for Aatmanirbhar defence got further impetus as the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) has approved proposals worth Rs Rs 76,390 crore for the procurement of military equipment and platforms including Anti-Tank Guided Missiles for the Indian Army, eight next-generation corvettes for the Indian Navy, and aero-engines for the Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force.
In an official statement, the Defence Ministry mentioned that “Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s clarion call for ‘Aatmanirbharta’, Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), in a meeting chaired by Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh on June 06, 2022, accorded Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for Capital Acquisition Proposals of the Armed Forces amounting to Rs 76,390 crore under ‘Buy (Indian)’, ‘Buy & Make (Indian)’ and ‘Buy (Indian-IDDM)’ categories.”
Under the ‘Buy (Indian)’ category, the procurement of products is done from the domestic vendor when the product is indigenously designed, developed, and manufactured with a minimum of 50% Indigenous Content (IC) on the cost basis of the total contract value. Or products, which may not have been designed and developed indigenously, having 60% IC on the cost basis of the total contract value.
Boost to Indian defence ecosystem
It is noteworthy that, for the first time planned next-generation corvettes will be designed entirely by the Navy’s Directorate of Naval Design and executed by an Indian shipyard through a competitive bid. Further, the private industry will also be allowed to bid, unlike earlier when a shipyard was nominated. The new warships will eventually replace the Khukri and Kora class corvettes. The DAC accorded AoN for procurement of Next Generation Corvettes (NGC) at an estimated cost of approx. Rs 36,000 crore for the Indian Navy.
For the Indian Army, the DAC accorded fresh AoNs for procurement of Rough Terrain Fork Lift Trucks (RTFLTs), Bridge Laying Tanks (BLTs), Wheeled Armoured Fighting Vehicles (Wh AFVs) with Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs) and Weapon Locating Radars (WLRs) through Indian firms with emphasis on indigenous design and development.
For Indian Air Force, the DAC accorded AoNs for the manufacture of Dornier Aircrafts and Su-30 MKI aero-engines by the Navratna CPSE M/s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited with a focus on enhancing indigenisation, particularly in indigenising aero-engine material.
