NEW DELHI: The defence ministry on Wednesday inked a Rs 2,906 crore contract for procurement of 18 `Ashwini’ low-level transportable radars (LLTRs) for the IAF, as a part of the continued drive to strengthen indigenous navy capabilities.
The contract was inked with defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL), within the presence of defence secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, for the LLTRs designed and developed by the Electronics & Radar Improvement Institution of DRDO. That is the primary time that the IAF will induct indigenous LLTRs as an alternative of these imported from overseas.
“The Ashwini LLTR is an lively electronically scanned phased array radar primarily based on state-of-the-art solid-state know-how. The radar is able to monitoring aerial targets from high-speed fighters to slow-moving targets similar to UAVs (unmanned aerial autos) or drones and helicopters,” a MoD official stated.
“The acquisition will considerably improve IAF’s operational preparedness. The programme is a significant step in direction of reaching self-reliance in defence manufacturing by decreasing dependency on international firms, moreover appearing as a catalyst for growth of the nation’s defence-industrial ecosystem,” he added.
The IAF deploys quite a lot of ground-based radars, together with LLTRs, in addition to airborne sensors for ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) capabilities alongside the borders with China and Pakistan.
The drive can be seeking to induct specialised mountain radars to look deep into enemy territory alongside the three,488-km Line of Precise Management with China, which has upgraded all its air bases dealing with India and deployed an in depth community of radars and surface-to-air guided weapons for the reason that navy confrontation in jap Ladakh erupted in April-Might 2020.