The equipment includes swarm drones, carbines and bulletproof jackets

India's Defence Ministry on Tuesday approved the procurement of military equipment and weapons worth Rs 28,000 crore; these include swarm drones, carbines and bulletproof jackets.

The procurement proposals were cleared by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

''The Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for capital acquisition proposals of the armed forces amounting to Rs 28,732 crore were accorded by the DAC,'' the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

The approvals were accorded by the DAC in this meeting under Buy (Indian IDDM) and Buy (Indian) categories giving a further boost to ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in Defence, the ministry noted.

Considering the demand of enhanced protection against the threat of enemy snipers to troops deployed along the Line of Control and in close combat operations in counter terrorism scenario, DAC accorded AoN for Bullet Proof Jackets with Indian Standard BIS VI level of protection, the ministry said.

To combat the current complex paradigm of conventional and hybrid warfare and counter terrorism at the borders, AoN for induction of approx. four lakh of Close Quarter Battle Carbines for the Services has also been accorded by the DAC. "This is set to provide major impetus to the small arms manufacturing industry in India and enhancing ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in small arms," according to the defence ministry.

Among the proposals approved by DAC in the meeting are three proposals of the Indian Army - Guided Extended Range Rocket Ammunition, Area Denial Munition Type I and Infantry Combat Vehicle – Command. The total value of these three proposals is Rs 8,599 crore.

Guided Extended Range Rocket Ammunition has a range of 75 kms with accuracy of 40 meters. The Aerial Denial Munition Type I Rocket Ammunition contains dual purpose sub munitions capable of neutralizing both tanks and armoured personnel carriers as well as B vehicle entrenched troops.

The Infantry Combat Vehicle – Command is equipped with technology to collect, disseminate, share and present real time information to commanders to facilitate quick decision making for execution of tasks.

The Ministry of Defence also pointed out that drone technology has proved to be a force multiplier in military operations in the recent conflicts across the world.

"Accordingly, to augment Indian Army’s capability in modern warfare, AoN for procurement of Autonomous Surveillance and Armed Drone Swarms has been accorded by the DAC under Buy (Indian-IDDM) category," the ministry said.

Tuesday's DAC meeting also approved the Indian Navy’s proposal to procure upgraded 1250KW capacity Marine Gas Turbine Generator for power generation application onboard Kolkata class of ships through Indian Industry. This will give a major boost to indigenous manufacturing of gas turbine generators, the defence ministry pointed out.

In order to enhance the security in the coastal region of the country, the DAC also approved the proposal of procurement of 14 Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs) for Indian Coast Guard under the Buy (Indian-IDDM) with 60% IC, the ministry added.