Article Posted on : - Apr 02, 2013

NEW DELHI (PTI): A Rs 25,000 crore proposal of the Indian Navy for procuring four large amphibious warfare vessels is expected to be considered by the Defence Ministry here on Tuesday.

A meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister A K Antony is also expected to approve amendments in the procurement procedure to give a bigger role to the indigenous industry for supplying military hardware to the armed forces.

"We are looking to add four more Landing Platform Decks (LPDs) in our fleet to operate alongside INS Jalashwa, the only LPD currently in service. The proposal is expected to come up for discussion at the DAC meeting on Tuesday," a Navy official told PTI here.

The procurement procedure has already begun with the release of the Request for Information (RFI) by the defence ministry, they said.

The four warships would be procured under the 'Buy and Make (Indian)' category of the defence procurement procedure under which the Indian shipyards, both private and public, would be required to form a partnership with foreign shipyards for the contract.

The Navy would use the warships to transport Main Battle Tanks (MBTs), heavy trucks, armoured personnel vehicles and other heavy machinery along with big troop contingents.