Defence gets Rs 80,000 crore boost, 6 submarines to be manufactured in India
26 Oct 2014 11:47 AM IST
The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) cleared two important decisions on acquiring arms
Union Defence Minister Arun Jaitley (Photo: PTI/File)
New Delhi: Delivering on its promise of expediting the pace of urgently-needed defence acquisitions for the armed forces, the Modi government on Saturday cleared acquisitions worth about Rs 80,000 crore, defence sources said.
On Saturday, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), headed by defence minister Arun Jaitley, made two important decisions among many.
A long-delayed proposal for manufacturing six submarines for the Indian Navy in Indian shipyards, estimated to cost about Rs 50,000 crore, was cleared and a tender will be issued to Indian shipyards.
The onus is on the Indian shipyards to tie up with foreign vendors for transfer of technology, sources said.
The move to get new submarines is a huge relief for the Navy which is facing a critical shortage of submarines.
The six new conventional submarines that will be built at Indian shipyards will be equipped with air independent propulsion technology, which allows the submarines to stay underwater for longer periods.
The submarines will also be fitted with land-attack cruise missiles and enhanced stealth features that will make it difficult to detect.
The six submarines will be built in Indian shipyards as part of the Modi government’s efforts to boost defence indigenisation while simultaneously accepting transfer of foreign technology.
The Navy is worried about the depleting numerical strength of its submarine fleet since the ongoing project for building six French-origin Scorpene submarines at the Mazgaon shipyard has been hit by delays.
The loss of its front-ranking conventional INS Sindhurakshak submarine last year added to its woes.
A committee of the ministry of defence will visit the shipyards and see whether these are compliant and capable enough to manufacture the new conventional submarines.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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