The Army has completed the fourth trance of Emergency Procurements (EP) undertaken between September 2022 to September 2023 with over 70 schemes concluded worth nearly ₹11,000 crore, according to defence sources who said they have been utilised to fill up “critical capability voids”. Similarly, the Indian Air Force has concluded 64 contracts under EP-4 worth around ₹8,137 crore.
“The primary objective of EP was to plug critical operational gaps, especially along the Northern Borders,” a defence source said. Elaborating on the contracts concluded, the source said about 6-7 schemes worth ₹1,300 crores went for weapon systems, ₹1,300 crore was used across 7-8 projects for protective equipment, and 9 to 10 schemes at about ₹1,500 crore related to Intelligence, Reconnaissance, and Surveillance. Another ₹2,000 crore was reserved for about 10 projects focusing on drones and counter drones. Communication and non-communication equipment comprised about a dozen plus projects, absorbing approximately ₹1,800 crore, and lastly, an amount of ₹3,100 crore was used for about 25 projects on survivability and training.the source stated.
The armed forces are currently executing the fourth tranche of Emergency Procurements (EP) sanctioned by the Defence Ministry and as per the stipulations, deliveries have to be completed within 12 months. In the earlier three tranches, the Army finalised 68 contracts worth approximately ₹7,000 crore.
