India US Deal Fix: The surveillance capabilities of the Indian Navy and Defense Forces are going to become even stronger. The Cabinet Committee on Security has approved a big deal to indigenously purchase two nuclear submarines and 31 Predator drones from America. In this, the Indian Navy will get two nuclear powered attack submarines, which will help in increasing the capabilities of the army manifold in the Indian Ocean region.
This deal to build two submarines at the Ship Building Center in Visakhapatnam will be worth about Rs 45,000 crore and will have major participation from private sector firms like Larsen & Toubro. This deal was on hold for a long time. The Indian Navy was insisting on this as it was a vital requirement for the country to overcome the lack of underwater capability. India has been planning for a long time to have six such submarines.
will be signed soon
This submarine, which is going to be built under this Advanced Technology Vessel Project, is different from the five nuclear submarines being built under the Arihant class at the same place. The second big deal approved today by the Cabinet Committee on Security is to purchase 31 Predator drones from American General Atomics under the Foreign Military Sales Agreement between the two governments. This deal had to be approved before October 31 because the American proposal was valid till that time and now it is going to be signed in the next few days.
How many drones will we get?
As per the contract, the defense forces will start receiving the drones four years after signing the deal. The Indian Navy will get 15 out of 31 drones while the Army and Indian Air Force will get eight drones each and they will be deployed simultaneously at two bases in Uttar Pradesh. At the same time, Indian equipment manufactured by DRDO and private sector company Solar Industries can be used as Make in India element on 31 drones, which are expected to be a game changer in peacetime surveillance.
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