‘BrahMos will be our primary weapon now,’ says Navy Chief after ₹19,000 crore deal cleared by Centre

Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar highlights BrahMos missile as primary weapon, emphasizing India's self-reliance in defense.

Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar on February 26 said that the Brahmos supersonic cruise missile will be the primary weapon of the Indian Navy, replacing the old missile system acquired from other countries.

"BrahMos will be our primary weapon now as the surface-to-surface missile weapon. Probably the Air Force and the air fighters also will have that as the primary air-to-surface weapon. This has evolved in range, in capabilities, in its lethality, and so on. So, this is going to be the mainstay for some time and that is why we are replacing all old missiles with this... and we are installing the BrahMos. Now, we have the expertise to install it in a very quick time," Navy chief told ANI in an interview.

Highlighting the fact that BrahMos is made in India the Navy Chief said that the missile is "a great advantage". "It is a very potent missile, and it has been evolving also, in range capability and so on. So the fact is that it is made in India, so we are not dependent on anybody else. It can be repaired, and spares are available. So it's a great advantage," he said.

The Navy chief remarks come soon after the Cabinet Committee on Security cleared the deal for over 200 BrahMos missiles under a ₹19,000 crore contract set to be signed on March 5.

The Navy Chief said this on the sidelines of the closing ceremony of the Defence expo in Pune.

The Navy Chief visited the Defence expo on February 26 in Pune. During his visit to various stalls of various defence manufacturing MSME industries , the Navy Chief highlighted the significance of MSME in India's mission to become Atmnirbhar Bharat in defence manufacturing.

The Navy Chief said, "This is a unique exhibition. They have been able to bring together several MSMEs... It is very important that we develop the ecosystem and environment for indigenization. Defence Expos facilitate this and encourage indigenous production... MSME expos like this have huge significance. Over 118 contracts have been signed and around 10-12 products have also been approved. There are a lot of things we are getting from MSMEs and startups."