As part of ‘Aatmanirbharta in Defence’ and to further boost Make–in–India initiative, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) signed five major capital acquisition contracts worth Rs 39,125.39 crore on 1 March 2024 in New Delhi. Out of the five contracts, one was with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for procurement of aero engines for MiG–29 aircraft, two with Larsen & Toubro Limited for procurement of Close–in Weapon System (CIWS) and procurement of High–Power Radar (HPR) and two with BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited (BAPL) for procurement of BrahMos missiles and procurement of shipborne BrahMos system for the Indian Defence Forces. “These deals will further strengthen indigenous capabilities, save foreign exchange and reduce dependency on Foreign Origin Equipment Manufactures in future”, stated MoD. The contract for RD–33 aero engines for MiG–29 aircraft has been signed with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) at a cost of Rs 5,249.72 crore. These aero engines will be produced by the Koraput Division of HAL. These aero engines are expected to fulfill the need of Indian Air Force (IAF) to sustain the operational capability of the MiG–29 fleet for the residual service life. The aero engines will be manufactured under Transfer of Technology (TOT) license from the Russian OEM. The programme will focus on indigenisation of several high value critical components, which would help increase the indigenous content of future Repair and Overhaul (ROH) tasks of RD–33 aero engines.
The contract for procurement of CIWS has been signed with Larsen & Toubro Limited at a cost of Rs 7,668.82 crore. CIWS will provide terminal air defence to select locations of the country. The project will boost and encourage active participation of Indian aerospace, defence and associated industries including MSMEs. The direct and indirect employment generated by this project would be approximately average of 2,400 persons/year over the period of five years. The contract for procurement of HPR has also been signed with Larsen & Toubro Limited at a cost of Rs 5,700.13 crore. It will replace existing long– range radars of IAF with modern Active Aperture Phased Array based HPR with advanced surveillance features. It will significantly enhance the terrestrial air defence capabilities of IAF with integration of sophisticated sensors capable of detection of small radar cross section targets. It will boost to indigenous radar manufacturing technology as it would be first of its kind radar built by the private sector in India.
The direct and indirect employment generated by this project would be approximately average of 1,000 people/year over the period of five years. The contract for procurement of BrahMos missiles was signed with BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited (BAPL) at a cost of Rs 19,518.65 crore. These missiles would be utilised to meet combat outfit and training requirements of Indian Navy. This project is likely to generate employment of nine lakh man–days in Joint Venture entity and around 135 lakh man–days in ancillary industries (including MSMEs) of the country. The contract for procurement of shipborne BrahMos system has also been signed with BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited (BAPL) at a cost of Rs 988.07 crore. This system is the Indian Navy’s primary weapon for maritime strike operations fitted onboard various frontline warships. The system is capable of hitting land or sea targets from extended ranges with pinpoint accuracy at supersonic speeds. The project is likely to generate employment of around 60,000 man–days over a period of 7–8 years.
