NEW DELHI: Under the direction of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the Defence purchase Council approved the Acceptance of Necessity (AoNs) for a number of capital purchase projects totaling Rs 2.23 lakh crore on Thursday. A total of Rs 2.20 lakh crore (98%) of the acquisition will come from local industries. A statement from the defence ministry stated, “This will give the Indian Defence Industry a substantial boost towards the aim of achieving the goal of ‘Aatmanirbharta’.” The acquisition of two types of anti-tank munitions (ADM Types 2 and 3), which are able to neutralise enemy people as well as tanks and armoured personnel carriers, has been granted by the council to the AoN.AoN has been granted permission to purchase a state-of-the-art Towed Gun System (TGS), which will replace the Indian Field Gun (IFG), which has reached the end of its useful life. The TGS will become a mainstay of the Indian Army’s artillery units. Additionally, the AoN was granted for the 155 mm Nubless projectile, which will increase the projectiles’ lethality and safety when used in 155 mm artillery weapons. The Indian Army will purchase all of these pieces of gear under the Buy (Indian-IDDM) category. In order to keep T-90 tanks’ combative advantage over enemy platforms, the AoN for the purchase and integration of Automatic Target Tracker (ATT) and Digital Basaltic Computer (DBC) for T-90 Tanks under the Buy (India) category has also been granted.The Indian Navy’s surface platforms have been granted the authority to purchase Medium Range Anti-Ship Missiles (MRAShM) under the Buy (Indian-IDDM) category. The MRAShM is intended to be a principal offensive armament on Indian Naval Ships and a lightweight surface-to-surface missile. Furthermore, the Indian Army and Air Force (IAF) received AoNs from the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) to purchase Light Combat Helicopters (LCH) and Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk 1A from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) under the Buy (Indian-IDDM) category. The DAC has also granted the AoNs for the in-house Su-30 MKI aircraft upgrade from HAL.Although acquiring these weapons will provide the IAF great strength, obtaining them from homegrown defence companies will raise the level of indigenous capacity. Additionally, it will significantly lessen reliance on foreign Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). Additionally, a significant modification to the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020 has received clearance by the DAC. It has been agreed that going forward, at least 50% of the indigenous content in all categories of procurement cases must consist of Indian-made materials, components, and software. The cost of an Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC), Comprehensive Maintenance Contract (CMC), or After-Sale Service will not be included in the computation of Indigenous content. Additionally, the DAC has decided to promote MSMEs’ and startups’ involvement in the defence ecosystem even more. Registered MSMEs and recognised start-ups will be given preference for issuing Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for all procurement cases with AoN costs up to Rs 300 crore. There will be no financial parameters attached to RFPs, and the Defence Procurement Board (DPB) may approve AoN costs up to Rs 500 crore on an individual basis.
