ProMASS: Dec 1, 2016: Breaking the Bofors jinx, India and the US inked a nearly 5,000 crore rupees deal for 145 M777 ultra-light howitzers, which will be mostly deployed near the borders with China.
This is the first deal for artillery guns since the Bofors scandal in 1980s. India signed the Letter of Acceptance which formalizes the contract between India and US for these guns, sources said. The deal for 145 American ultra-light howitzers, costing about 5,000 crore rupees was recently cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS). The deal was inked as a two-day meeting of the 15th India-US Military Cooperation Group (MCG) began in Delhi.
India-US MCG is a forum established to progress Defence Cooperation between HQ Integrated Defence Staff and US Pacific Command at the strategic and operational levels. A 260-member delegation from the US Defence Forces and several officers from the three Services HQ and HQ IDS representing the Indian side are attending the bilateral event. The offsets, under which BAE Systems, manufacturer of the gun, will invest about 200 million dollar, will be pursued independently.
While 25 guns will come to India in a fly-away condition, the rest will be assembled at the proposed Assembly Integration and Test facility for the weapon system in India in partnership with Mahindra.
News Courtesy: AIR NEWS
