The New Indian Express : Sep 01, 2020, 09:05 AM
NEW DELHI: The defence ministry on Monday sealed a deal with two leading domestic defence majors to procure Pinaka rocket launchers for six Army regiments at a cost of Rs 2,580 crore, officials said.They said the Pinaka regiments will be deployed along India's border with China and Pakistan to further enhance operational preparedness of the armed forces.The contract has been signed with Tata Power Company Ltd (TPCL) and engineering major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) while defence public sector undertaking Bharat Earth Movers Ltd (BEML) will also be part of the project.The BEML will supply the vehicles on which the rocket launchers will be mounted.In a statement, the defence ministry said the six Pinaka regiments comprise 114 launchers with Automated Gun Aiming and Positioning System (AGAPS) and 45 command posts.It said the missile regiments are planned to be operationalised by 2024.It said the weapons systems will have 70 per cent indigenous content and that the project has been approved by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.The Pinaka Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) has been indigenously designed and developed by DRDO."This is a flagship project showcasing public private partnership under the aegis of government of India (DRDO & MoD) enabling 'Aatmanirbharta' in cutting edge defence technologies," the ministry said.