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Informist, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026

 

--Defence panel OKs acquisition proposals worth INR 1.10 tln

 

NEW DELHI – The Defence Acquisition Council, headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Monday accorded in-principle administrative approval to various acquisition proposals of the defence forces at an estimated cost of about INR 1.10 trillion. For the Indian Army, the panel approved procuring chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear reconnaissance vehicles and high mobility vehicles, a defence ministry release said. It also approved procuring self-propelled mechanical mine layers, advanced light helicopters, trawl tanks, and the Sarvatra bridge system. 

 

The reconnaissance vehicles will be capable of detecting, identifying, monitoring and marking areas contaminated with chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear agents, according to the ministry. The high-mobility vehicles will enhance operational capabilities, logistical support, and mobility in challenging terrain, and the mechanical mine layers will provide fast, responsive minelaying in difficult terrain, the release said. The advanced light helicopters will execute complex missions across all terrains and operational situations for the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force. The trawl tanks and bridge system will be used to provide composite crossings to fighting formations during operations in varied terrain, the ministry said. 

 

For the Indian Navy, the council has approved the procurement of Arudhra radars, their design and development, and the subsequent procurement of marine gas turbines. "Arudhra Radar will replace the existing Air Route Surveillance Radars at various Naval Air Stations, and MGT (marine gas turbines), a warship propulsion system, will reduce dependency on foreign vendors," the release said.

 

For the Indian Air Force, it approved various proposals to enhance the war-fighting capability of fighters, transports and helicopters. The council approved procuring ground-based multi-purpose jammers and installing the Defence Forces Secure Access Card System. The ground-based multi-purpose jammers will provide effective jamming against adversaries' radars. The Defence Forces Secure Access Card System will replace existing paper-based identity cards, passes, or permits with an interoperable radio frequency identification-based smart card system, the ministry said. 

 

Of the total approvals accorded, the ministry said approximately 98% of procurements will be made from Indian industry. End

 

Reported by Devanshu Singla

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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