Defence Ministry Signs Rs 880 Crore Contract With Israeli Firm To Procure Light Machine Guns For Indian Armed Forces

In a big boost for the Indian armed forces, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a contract with Israel Weapon Industries (IWI), which is based in Ramat HaSharon city in Israel, for procurement of over 16,000 light machine guns (LMG), reports News on AIR.

The Rs 880 crore deal will fulfil a long-standing requirement of a modern state-of-the-art Light Machine Gun (LMG) for the armed forces, according to an MoD statement.

“The Acquisition Wing of Ministry of Defence has signed the capital acquisition contract with Israel Weapons Industries for procurement of 16,479 LMGs at a cost of Rs 880 crore with the approval of Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh,” the ministry said in the statement.

The contracted Negev 7.62X51 mm LMG is a combat-proven weapon and currently used by several countries around the globe, it added.

Defence Ministry further said the LMG will greatly enhance the lethality and range of a soldier vis-a-vis the presently used weapon.

The Ministry noted that the provisioning of the operationally urgent and very critically needed weapon will boost the confidence of the frontline troops and provide much-needed combat power to the armed forces.