India to buy Israeli combat radio

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) has approved a deal with an Israeli firm to buy 4,900 combat net radio (CNR) sets, defence ministry sources told this newspaper.

The deal for the Tadiran CNR sets made by Israeli firm Elbit may cost Rs 900 crore. CNR radio sets are secure and sophisticated push-to-talk-operated radio sets for vertical connectivity within the chain of command in battlefield and field formations. They are known for voice clarity, and come equipped with higher range, frequency-hopping and encryption capabilities.

Ramping up the Indian Army’s electronics and communications systems and network is a key focus of the government.

In the last DAC on September 28, the DAC had given clearance to buy a Rs 330 crore electronic warfare system (EWS), especially meant for low-intensity conflict operations in Jammu and Kashmir.

While the EWS is for surveillance of the enemy’s radio and data transmissions, eavesdropping, gathering intelligence across the electromagnetic spectrum and deploying counter tactics by sophisticated jamming and other such methods, the CNR sets will provide a secure network for the Indian Army. The DAC is the apex procurement body of the defence ministry. After its approval, the proposals will go to the Union cabinet for final clearance.

Another proposal that got the DAC’s nod, according to news agencies, is the crucial government-to-government deal with the US for 145 ultra-light howitzers valued at Rs 5,100 crore where certain ‘deviations’ have been approved. The proposal for the 145 M-777 howitzers was first cleared by the DAC in June.

These howitzers — the first ones to be bought in over 30 years due to the fallout of the Bofors kickback scandal — are expected to be a vital equipment in the arsenal of the new Mountain Strike Corps that is being raised in the north-east, which shares a long border with China.