Defence Ministry approves acquisition of military hardware worth Rs 28,000 crore

New Delhi, Dec 17: The defence ministry on Thursday approved procurement of weapons and military equipment worth Rs 28,000 crore for the three services, officials said.

The procurement proposals were cleared at a time India and China are locked in a bitter border standoff in eastern Ladakh. The officials said almost all the weapons and military hardware approved for procurement will be acquired from domestic industry.

"The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved proposals to procure equipment worth Rs 27,000 crore from domestic industry," the defence ministry said in a statement.

Officials said a total of seven acquisition proposals were approved by the DAC, the defence ministry's highest decision-making body on procurement.

"Six of the seven proposals, that is, Rs 27,000 crore out of Rs 28,000 crore for which AoNs (Acceptance of Necessity) were granted will be sourced from the Indian industry to give a boost to the 'Make in India' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiatives," the ministry said.

Acquisition proposals approved include procurement of the DRDO-designed and developed airborne early warning and control systems for the Indian Air Force, next generation offshore patrol vessels for the Indian Navy and modular bridges for the Indian Army.