Adani Defence & Aerospace delivers first batch of ‘Prahar’ LMGs to Army in ‘Make in India’ milestone

Gwalior — In what has been described as a milestone for the Make in India programme, Adani Defence & Aerospace on Saturday delivered the first batch of 2,000 ‘Prahar’ Light Machine Guns (LMGs) to the Indian Armed Forces.

The 7.62 mm-calibre weapons were manufactured at the company’s Small Arms Complex located on the outskirts of Gwalior. CEO Ashish Rajvanshi called the development a significant step in boosting indigenous defence manufacturing.

“We have been given seven years by the customer to deliver 41,000 LMGs, but at the speed and pace at which the team is working, we are going to deliver this in less than three years,” Rajvanshi told IANS on the sidelines of the event. He added that the company expects to produce 1,000 LMGs every month going forward.

The event was attended by senior officials, including A. Anbarasu, Director General (Acquisition) at the Ministry of Defence, who flagged off trucks carrying the first batch for delivery to the Army.

Rajvanshi noted that the journey began in 2020 with the vision of achieving Aatmanirbhar Bharat in defence manufacturing. Over six years, the company evolved from a component manufacturer to a full-gun original equipment manufacturer (OEM).

Anbarasu said the delivery demonstrated the ability to translate contracts into production quickly, highlighting the growing capabilities of India’s domestic defence industry.

With inputs from IANS