India’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed two contracts for procurement of military equipment on January 4, 2024 in New Delhi. These are:-
- 697 Nos. of Bogie Open Military (BOM) Wagons at a cost of Rs 473 Crores with M/s Jupiter Wagons Limited
- 56 Nos. of Mechanical Minefield Marking Equipment (MMME) Mark II at a cost of Rs 329 Crores with M/s BEML Ltd
To be noted, both the procurement contracts are under Buy (Indian-IDDM) category.
The BOM Wagons and MMME will be produced with equipment and sub-system sourced from indigenous manufacturers, giving a boost to the indigenous manufacturing and participation of the private sector in defence production, realizing the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat.
Bogie Open Military (BOM) wagons, designed by Research Design and Standard Organization (RDSO) are specialist wagons used by the Indian Army for mobilization of the Army units.
Further, these wagons are used to transport light vehicles, Artillery Guns, BMPs, Engineering Equipment etc. from their peacetime locations to operational areas.
This Critical Rolling Stock will ensure speedy and simultaneous induction of units and equipment into operational areas during any conflict situation.
Besides, it will facilitate their peacetime movement for Military exercise and movement of units from one station to another.
Marking of all minefields is a mandatory requirement as per amended Protocol-II on Convention in certain Conventional Weapons to which India is a signatory.
MMME has been designed to operate cross country with complete load of stores and carry out marking of minefields with minimal time and manpower employment.
Notably, the equipment is based on an in-service High Mobility Vehicle having advanced mechanical and electrical systems which will reduce the timings for minefield marking during operations and will enhance the operational capability of Indian Army.
Source: https://pib.gov.in/
