NEW DELHI, October 3 — The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by the Raksha Mantri, on Saturday accorded Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for ten capital acquisition proposals amounting to ₹1.45 lakh crore, reinforcing modernization priorities across the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard.
According to the official communication issued by the Ministry of Defence, an overwhelming 99 percent of the sanctioned capital expenditure falls under the 'Buy (Indian-IDDM)'—Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured—category of the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP 2020). Chief among the cleared procurements is the development and production of Future Ready Combat Vehicles (FRCV) to replace aging T-72 main battle tanks, an indigenous avionics, radar, and electronic warfare avionics overhaul for the Su-30MKI fighter fleet, Next Generation Fast Patrol Vessels for the Coast Guard, and indigenous precision-guided standoff munitions.
Ministry officials stressed that these clearances will significantly stimulate the domestic aerospace and defense manufacturing ecosystem, ensuring substantial technology transfer and supply chain participation across Indian micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs).
The statutory governance of the Defence Acquisition Council (established in 2001 following the Group of Ministers' recommendations post-Kargil conflict), the tier classification under the Defence Acquisition Procedure 2020 (Buy IDDM, Buy Indian, Buy & Make Indian), FDI limits in defense (up to 74% via automatic route), and strategic modernization imperatives are recurring core topics across UPSC Civil Services (GS-III: Security & Defence Procurement) and CDS/NDA examinations.