Overview
- Indo‑Russian Rifles Private Limited reported between Aug. 22 and Aug. 24 that it manufactured and test‑fired the first AK‑203 'Sher' made entirely from Indian components at its Korwa facility.
- IRRPL said the prototype completed multiple firing checks including burst fire and factory trials that totalled about 3,000 rounds, and the company called the initial results encouraging.
- The joint venture will hand over a batch of fully indigenised prototypes for Indian Army user trials scheduled from September 2026 and plans to begin deliveries of fully local rifles from April 2027.
- Under a roughly Rs 5,200 crore contract to supply 601,427 rifles, IRRPL aims to ramp production to one rifle every 100 seconds and to finish deliveries around late 2030 rather than the original 2032 deadline.
- Achieving full indigenisation required localising about 50 major parts, 180 subcomponents and roughly 120 manufacturing processes while converting Russian material standards to Indian equivalents, which strengthens domestic suppliers and could enable future exports.