New Delhi, April 10
The Army and the Air Force will finally get new helicopters. The defence ministry at a high-level meeting today okayed the requirement of 384 light helicopters and decided to invite global tenders in the form of a “request for proposal” from helicopter makers.
New clauses have been introduced that will allow a greater degree of technology transfer into India and also pave the way for mandatory investment in India in the defence sector.
These “light choppers” will cost about $ 1.6 billion or approximately Rs 6,400 crore in what will be one of the major defence deals in the recent times.
The decision on inviting global tenders for the choppers was taken at a meeting chaired by defence minister A.K. Antony at the South Block here. Among others, minister of state for defence production Rao Inderjit Singh and minister of state for defence M.M. Pallam Raju, besides the top brass of the ministry of defence and the services attended the meeting, the defence authorities said.
The new machines will replace the old and aged 1970s generation Chetak and Cheetah helicopters of the Army, which has a plan to modernise and expand its Army Aviation Corps (AAC) in line with the current and future rapid mobility battlefield requirements. These helicopters operate in the high altitude Saichen, Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh.
Of the total 384 helicopters, 259 will be for the Army while the remaining 125 will be for the Air force.
Of the entire purchase, 197 helicopters will be purchased directly from the manufacturers and suppliers. The remaining will be built by Hindustan Aeronautics limited (HAL) in India under the technology transfer deal that will be part of the final deal when signed by the government.
