In a significant boost for the defence forces, the Indian Army and the Air Force are going to get land-attack BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, which would be able to hit targets at a range of beyond 800 Km.
The proposal for the acquisition of around 250 of these missiles has been cleared by the Defence Acquisition Council and will now be taken to the Cabinet Committee on Security for final approval, defence sources told ANI.
The missiles would be part of the units handling the missiles and would be deployed in both desert and high-altitude areas, they said.
The missiles earlier used to have a range of around 300 Kms but their capabilities have been enhanced significantly and can hit targets up to 800 Km
The proposal from the two forces for the BrahMos cruise missiles is a repeat order of the missiles that the Indian Navy is getting, they said.
The BrahMos has been one of the most successful joint ventures in the Indian weapon manufacturing industry, even though a majority of it is produced by the Russian side.
The Indian side is working towards indigenisation of the major portions of the weapon system and has achieved success in some areas with support from the private sector industry.
The missile is being successfully exported to the Philippines with Russian support and more countries are showing interest in it.
The BrahMos Aerospace, under its new leadership, is also working towards BrahMos Next Generation missiles, which would be produced in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.
