All the contracts will generate long-term employment in India and will boost the eco-system involving the DPSUs and Indian private defence manufacturers
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. In line with the government s vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat , the Ministry of Defence on Thursday signed contracts with Indian shipyards for acquisition of 11 next generation offshore patrol vessels and six next generation missile vessels at a cost of nearly Rs 19,600 crore, officials said. India News | MoD Signs Rs 19,600 Cr Contracts with Indian Shipyards for Acquisition of Next Generation Vessels.
According to the ministry, seven ships will be indigenously designed, developed and manufactured by GSL, and four by GRSE. Their deliveries are scheduled to start from September 2026.
Procurement of Naval Anti-Ship Missiles, Multi-Purpose Vessels and High Endurance Autonomous Vehicles, to enhance maritime strength, was also approved.
In a display of cost-cutting synergy between ministries, the government has announced that six used Air India A-320 jet airliners will be recycled into Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) systems for the Indian Air Force (IAF). This will involve withdrawing the airliners from Air India, sending them to France for fitment of airborne radars, and then handing them over to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to be integrated with the complex software that will allow these aircraft to function as “eye-in-the-sky” controllers of air force battles. The “acceptance of necessity” (AoN) of AEW&C systems was one of seven procurement clearances the Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on Thursday, amounting to Rs 28,000 crore. The MoD terms this as a “big boost to Make in India”. These are the first AoNs the MoD is according under the new Defence Acquisition Procedure 2020.