Rs 70,500-crore indigenous arms buy gets defence ministry's approval

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the defence ministry’s apex body for clearing weapons procurement, met on Thursday under the chairmanship of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and accorded Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for capital acquisitions worth Rs 70,500 crore.

Of these proposals, which are being processed under the highest-priority category of “Buy {Indian –IDDM (Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured)}”, Indian Navy acquisitions account for more than Rs 56,000 crore.

These largely include indigenous BrahMos missiles, Shakti Electronic Warfare (EW) systems, and Maritime Utility Helicopters.

Including the latest proposals, AoNs granted for capital acquisitions in the current financial year 2022-23 amount to