India seeks 200 copters to replace ageing Cheetah & Chetak fleet
The Army on Friday issued a request for information (RFI) to vendors for the acquisition of 120 reconnaissance and surveillance helicopters (RSHs) and another 80 for the IAF. "The defence ministry intends to urgently replace the fleet of existing Cheetah and Chetak helicopters with suitable light helicopters of modern design," the RFI said.
The RSHs should be able to perform surveillance by day and night, transport small number troops for special missions, carry internal and external loads in support of ground operations and perform a "scout role" in conjunction with attack helicopters, the RFI added.
The armed forces have been demanding new light helicopters to replace their around 350 Cheetah and Chetak choppers, which are of the design vintage of the 1960s, for well over two decades now. They have sounded the alarm several times but to no avail till now, as reported by TOI earlier.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Rare earths not so rare again, India averts crippling crunch: Anatomy of a near-disaster
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel In a significant development, China has finally lifted restrictions on the export of rare earth magnets to India. This decision comes as a major relief to various key sectors of Indian economy, including the automobile industry, renewable energy, consumer electronics, defence, aerospace and China reopening the rare earth supply lines, Indian industry narrowly averted a disaster that could have potentially cripped Indian industry. A ToI analysis looks at why China's lifting of these curbs is timely, especially with the upcoming festive season in India navigates its path towards self-reliance in rare earth magnet production, the recent lifting of Chinese export curbs marks a crucial step. It opens the door for industries to thrive while also setting the stage for future initiatives aimed at reducing dependence on foreign sources, ToI's analysis earth magnets are known for their exceptional strength and resistance to demagnetisation. These magnets are made from rare earth elements such as neodymium, praseodymium and dysprosium, which give them their powerful magnetic most prevalent type of rare earth magnet is the neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnet, widely used in applications where space and weight are plays a pivotal role in the global rare earth magnet market, accounting for approximately 70% of the world's rare earth metals mining and nearly 90% of magnet production. The country dominates the supply chain, overseeing mining, refining, alloy production and magnet control has allowed China to maintain a stronghold in the industry, especially as the demand for rare earth magnets has surged in recent years, ToI's analysis (by Pankaj Doval) automobile sector, which is required to import about 870 tonnes of rare earth magnets in 2025-26, has been particularly affected by China's previous magnets are essential for various components in both internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and electric vehicles (EVs), including electric motors, speedometers and ignition stringent import process imposed by China had raised alarms, with many companies warning of potential production halts and delays in product recent relaxation of export controls is expected to provide substantial relief to Indian industries, enabling them to meet rising industry stakeholders are still advocating for the Indian government to facilitate imports from non-China sources, such as Vietnam, Brazil and Russia, until local production capabilities are towards the future, India aims to achieve self-sufficiency in the production of rare earth magnets within the next three to five years. To realise this goal, a comprehensive domestic value chain must be would require financial incentives linked to production, as well as policy support to encourage investments in high-technology public-private partnerships could play a critical role in setting up rare earth processing facilities and magnet production clusters across the country.
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
Indian MF industry begins a big new push with four states as testing grounds
The Association of Mutual Funds of India ( Amfi ) is on a mission to broaden its investor base significantly. In collaboration with India Post , the organisation is aiming to train around one lakh postmen to serve as mutual fund distributors, The Times of India reported on August 20. This initiative is part of a broader strategy to ensure that every district in selected states has at least ten distributors by the end of the year, ToI's report (by Sidhartha) said. Amfi's chief executive, Venkat Nageswar Chalasani, told ToI that four states -- Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Meghalaya -- will be the testing grounds for this major new initiative. The plan is to train college students in these regions, targeting the addition of 20,000 new distributors within the first year. By the year's end, the goal is to ensure that every district has a minimum of ten trained distributors, with an aim to increase this to twenty by the following year. In addition to training, Amfi is working on partnerships with leading academic institutions to create a "train the trainers" programme. This move will enhance the capacity of local distributors and improve the overall distribution network. Live Events The collaboration with the department of posts also addresses long-standing issues related to KYC (Know Your Customer) compliance for individuals lacking Aadhaar numbers. The initiative aims to revamp India Post's operations, transforming each of its verticals into profit centres. If successful, postmen will take on roles similar to relationship managers in banks, promoting savings products and expanding the reach of mutual fund investments. Currently, approximately 45% of mutual fund investments originate from the bottom 30 towns, while the remaining 65% comes from the top 30 cities. This highlights a significant opportunity for growth in smaller towns and rural areas. Despite an annual influx of about 30,000 new distributors into the mutual fund industry, net additions remain around the 10,000 mark, emphasising the need for increased distribution efforts. The mutual fund sector has experienced remarkable growth in recent years, with the number of folios rising from 2.1 crore in 2019 to 5.6 crore today. Chalasani expressed optimism about doubling this figure in the coming years. He told the newspaper that the campaign has raised considerable awareness about mutual funds, indicating a vast potential market, particularly given the existence of 80 crore bank accounts in India. Currently, assets under management in India's mutual fund sector represent about 21% of the country's GDP. In contrast, developed nations often see this figure exceed 100%, with the global average sitting at around 65%. The potential for growth in India's mutual fund market is substantial.
Mint
5 hours ago
- Mint
HAL share price: Defence stock jumps over 3% on report of govt nod to buy 97 LCA Mark 1A fighter jets for ₹62,000 cr
HAL share price rallied over 3% on Wednesday after the government approved the project to buy 97 Tejas aircrafts for ₹ 62,000 crore. The defence stock gained as much as 3.56% to ₹ 4,611.60 apiece on the BSE. The Cabinet Committee on Security cleared the acquisition of 97 LCA Mark 1A fighter jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF) at a cost of ₹ 62,000 crore, ANI reported, quoting defence sources. The approval, granted in a high-level meeting, paves the way for Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd to scale up production of the indigenous aircraft. This marks the second major order for LCA Mark 1A fighters, following the earlier contract for 83 aircraft valued at around ₹ 48,000 crore. The new Tejas jets will replace the ageing MiG-21 fleet, which is being phased out by the government in the coming weeks, the report added. The LCA Mark 1A is equipped with advanced avionics and radars compared with the initial batch of 40 LCAs already supplied to the IAF. The indigenous content in the new aircraft is expected to exceed 65%. The move aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's push for self-reliance in defence manufacturing. HAL has secured a pipeline of projects to build a range of indigenous fighter jets, helicopters, and their engines. In addition, the company is expected to bag contracts for more than 200 LCA Mark 2 aircraft and a similar number of fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA). Krishna Doshi, Defence Analyst at Ashika Institutional Equities said that the recent order for additional Mk1A fighter jets is a significant positive for Hindustan Aeronautics, taking the total contracted fleet to 180 aircraft (including the earlier order of 83 units). 'This development not only strengthens HAL's growth visibility but also acts as a strong catalyst for the broader domestic defence ecosystem. Furthermore, the company's Q1 performance exceeded expectations, reinforcing our constructive stance on the stock. That said, timely supply of GE404 engines remains a key monitorable, with only two units delivered so far,' Doshi said. Nevertheless, HAL has committed to delivering 12 Mk1A aircraft by FY26-end, which will be crucial given the Indian Air Force's growing operational requirements, she added. Prashanth Tapse, Sr VP Research – Research Analyst at Mehta Equities also noted that the significant order has boosted investor confidence, taking HAL's order book to over ₹ ₹ 2.51 lakh crore, a sharp rise from ₹ 94,127 crore a year ago. 'Backed by the government's strong push for domestic defence manufacturing under the Make in India initiative, HAL is strategically positioned as a pure defence play with promising long-term revenue visibility,' Tapse said. On the technical front, HAL share price stock shows strength with a short-term target range of ₹ 4,800 – ₹ 5,000, while support lies below ₹ 4,320, making it an attractive opportunity for both investors and traders, Tapse said. Hindustan Aeronautics share price has fallen 2% in one month and declined 6% in three months, but the defence stock has rallied 33% in six months and has gained 10% on a year-to-date (YTD) basis. HAL share price has jumped 140% in two years, while the PSU defence stock has delivered multibagger returns of 660% in the past five years. At 9:20 AM, HAL share price was trading 1.70% higher at ₹ 4,528.54 apiece on the BSE.
