Overview
- The Defence Acquisition Council, chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on July 3 granted Acceptance of Necessity for roughly ₹52,000 crore of capital acquisition proposals to start formal purchase processes for the Army, Navy and Air Force.
- For the Army the AoN covers the Akash Tarang anti‑UAV electronic‑warfare system, indigenous man‑portable anti‑tank guided missiles (MPATGM), MRSAM medium‑range air‑defence, V‑SHORADS very short‑range systems, active protection systems for tanks and jet‑powered kamikaze drones.
- The Navy’s approvals include multi‑influence ground mines, naval shipborne unmanned aerial systems and a land‑based testing facility for electric propulsion to support shipboard propulsion development and trials.
- The Air Force received AoN for fixed‑wing high‑altitude pseudo‑satellites (FW‑HAPS) to provide long‑endurance intelligence, surveillance and communications capability from the stratosphere.
- Acceptance of Necessity is an in‑principle administrative clearance that triggers tenders, technical evaluations and contract talks while reported plans for local manufacture with firms such as BEL, BDL, Adani and L&T and earlier cost estimates for packages remain subject to final selection and commercial negotiation.