The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), under the
chairmanship of Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh on 30 November
2023, accorded approval in respect of Acceptance of Necessity
(AoNs) for various Capital Acquisition Proposals amounting to Rs
2.23 lakh crore, of which, acquisition worth Rs
2.20 lakh crore (98% of total AoN amount) will be sourced from
domestic industries. This will give a substantial boost to the
Indian defence industry towards the aim of achieving the goal
of ‘Aatmanirbharta’.
The DAC has accorded the AoN for
procurement of two types of anti-tank munitions namely, Area Denial Munition
(ADM) Type-2 and Type-3, which are capable of neutralising tanks and
armoured personnel carriers and enemy personnel. To replace the Indian Field
Gun (IFG), which has completed its service life, AoN for procurement of state of
the art Towed Gun System (TGS) has been granted which will
become a mainstay of artillery forces of Indian Army. The AoN
was also accorded for 155 mm Nubless projectile for use in 155 mm
Artillery guns which will enhance lethality and safety of the projectiles.
All these equipment of the Indian Army will be procured under Buy
(Indian-IDDM) category.
The AoN for procurement and integration of
Automatic Target Tracker (ATT) and Digital Computer (DBC) for T-90 tanks under
Buy (India) category have also been accorded which will help in maintaining
combative edge of T-90 tanks
over adversary platforms. The AoN for procurement of Medium
Range Anti-Ship Missiles (MRAShM) for surface platform of
Indian Navy under Buy (Indian-IDDM) category has also
been accorded. The MRAShM is envisaged
as a lightweight surface to surface missile which will
be a primary offensive weapon onboard Indian naval ships.
In addition, the DAC accorded AoNs for procurement of
Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) for Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Army and
Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk.1A for IAF from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited
(HAL) under Buy (Indian-IDDM) category. The AoNs have
also been accorded by the DAC for upgradation of Su-30MKI aircraft
indigenously from HAL. While procurement of these equipment will provide
enormous strength to the IAF, acquisition from domestic
defence industries will take the indigenous capability to a new
height. It will also reduce dependability on foreign Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) substantially.
Further to maximise
indigenisation, the DAC has accorded approval for a major amendment
in the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020. It has been
decided that henceforth, in all categories of procurement cases, minimum 50% of
indigenous content shall be in the form of material, components and
software that are manufactured in India. For the purpose of calculation of indigenous
content, cost of Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC), Comprehensive
Maintenance Contract (CMC) and After Sale Service shall be excluded.
Also, the DAC has taken decision to further
encourage start-ups/MSMEs participation in the defence ecosystem. For all
procurement cases with AoN cost upto Rs 300 crore, registered
MSMEs and recognised startups will be considered for issue of Request
for Proposal (RFP) without any stipulation of financial parameters, which
can further be relaxed with approval of Defence Procurement Board
(DPB) for AoN cost upto Rs 500 crore on case-to-case basis.