India bids for setting up small arms manufacturing unit in Egypt

New Delhi, July 17 (UNI) India is bidding for a global tender to establish a small arms manufacturing unit in Egypt, chairman of the Ordnance Factory Board PK Misra said here.

The country is bidding for the Egyptian contract on the strength of indigenously developed high tech Excalibur rifle which is an impropved version of 5.56 INSAS rifle, being produced at Ichhapur near Kolkata and already being used by the Indian Armed Forces, Mr Misra told Doordarshan in an interview.

Excalibur, which is also being manufactured at Ichhapur Rifle Factory, which is one of the 39 ordnance units under the Ordnance Factory Board, has been tried and commended by India Infantry School at Mhow.

''Simultaneously we are trying to sell the rifle as an export item, he added.

''There is no limit to earnings from abroad in arms manufacturing, and in another ten years, we would like to have Rs 1000 crore worth of exports,'' said the Chairman of the Ordnance Factory Board.

He said the ordnance factories have also developed an indigenous anti-material rifle and have started work on a full Infantry Soldier System which will be a formidable force multiplier in land battles.

The anti-material rifle that is being produced at the Board's Trichy unit has three barrels and can therefore destroy concrete bunkers and soft armour plates, said Mr Misra.

He was participating in Doordharshan's programme titled 'War and Peace'.

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