Defence Ministry clears procurement worth over Rs 70.0 billion including howitzers

New Delhi, May 12 (PTI) Speeding up the military modernisation process, India's Defence Ministry has cleared procurement projects worth over Rupees 70.0 billion (over USD 1.3 billion) including the long-pending acquisition of 145 Ultra Light Howitzers from the US under a Rs 30.0 billion (about USD 570 million) deal. The decision to go ahead with the procurement of 145 M777 howitzers from the US under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) route and several other items was taken at a meeting Friday of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister A K Antony. The DAC also cleared a proposal to procure over 65 radars for the L-70 air defence guns which will be worth over Rs 30.0 (about USD 570 million), Defence Ministry sources told PTI here. The projects approved by the DAC will now be put up before the Finance Ministry for clearance before they are taken up by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) for final approval. The Ultra Light Howitzers of 155 mm (39 calibre) were being acquired for deployment in high altitude areas in the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh and the Ladakh region of the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir, the sources said, adding that this would be the first acquisition of howitzers by the Indian Army in the last 26 years. After the Bofors controversy in 1986, no new gun has been procured by the Army for its artillery. The M777 guns, manufactured by the BAE Systems of the US, can be airlifted easily and be used for quick deployment of assets in mountainous regions. The go-ahead for procurement of these guns had been cleared by a high-level committee headed by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation chief V K Saraswat. The other projects of the Army cleared by the DAC included procurement of simulators for T-90 tanks worth over Rs 3.00 billion (about USD 57 million) and 300 water tankers worth Rs 900 million (about USD 17 million). The list of items cleared Friday by the Defence Ministry includes hardware for the artillery, armoured and the air defence arms of the Army. Army Chief Gen V K Singh had some time back raised questions about the preparedness of his force in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and mentioned all the above three arms which were facing critical shortage of equipment. The DAC also cleared a proposal of the Indian Navy to build a new cadet training ship worth Rs 4.8 billion (about USD 90 million) and a joint Air Force and Army proposal for 300 aerial targets worth Rs 3.5 billion (about USD 66 million), the sources said. PTI