MoD clears acquisition proposals worth Rs 13,165 cr

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) at a meeting on Wednesday accorded approval for procurement of 25 advanced light helicopters (ALH) from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) under Buy Indian scheme. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh chairs the DAC. The copters will cost Rs 3,850 crore. The decision comes a day after an ageing Cheetah helicopter crashed near Patni Top in Jammu and Kashmir killing both pilots. The single-engine Cheetah helicopters are based on the 1950s’ designed Alouette Aérospatiale 315B Lama of France and are licence produced by HAL. The ALH is twin-engine helicopter and is based on latest technologies. Maintaining continued thrust towards “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” for giving boost to indigenous design and development, the DAC okayed the addition of 75 medium-range surface-to-air missiles (MRSAM) for Rs 1,700 crore to be procured from Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), company owned by the MoD. The MRSAM is used to tackle incoming airborne threats. The DAC accorded approval to procurement of rocket ammunition from Indian sources at a cost of around Rs 4,962 crore. In all, the DAC okayed proposals worth Rs 13,165 crore. Procurement worth Rs 11,486 cr (around 87%) will be from domestic sources.