NEW DELHI: India has signed a new contract to import 73,000 more SiG Sauer assault rifles from the United States, supplementing the 72,400 rifles already acquired for frontline Army troops. This move comes amidst ongoing military tensions with China in eastern Ladakh. “These SiG-716 ‘Patrol’ rifles, with a 7.62x51mm caliber and an effective range of 500 meters, are intended for infantry battalions stationed along the borders with China and Pakistan. The repeat order is valued at Rs 837 crore,” a source informed TOI on Tuesday.
The delay in the domestic production of Russian AK-203 Kalashnikov rifles led to the initial procurement of 72,400 SiG-716 rifles (66,400 for the Army, 4,000 for the IAF, and 2,000 for the Navy) under a Rs 647 crore contract with US firm SiG Sauer, signed in February 2019 through the fast-track procurement route. Last December, the Defence Acquisitions Council (DAC), led by Rajnath Singh, approved the acquisition of an additional 73,000 SiG-716 rifles. Simultaneously, the Army is also in the process of procuring 40,949 light machine guns, cleared by the DAC in August 2023, at an estimated cost of Rs 2,165 crore.
On the assault rifle front, the first batch of 35,000 Kalashnikov AK-203s was finally delivered to the Army earlier this year, after being assembled at the Korwa ordnance factory in Amethi district, UP, under the Indo-Russia Rifles Private Limited joint venture.
A total of 600,000 AK-203 rifles are planned to be produced at the Korwa factory over the next decade. These 7.62×39 mm caliber rifles, with an effective range of 300 meters, are designed to meet the needs of the over 1.1 million-strong Army, as well as the IAF and Navy.
The AK-203 project, announced in 2018, faced significant delays due to issues related to costing, royalty, technology transfer, indigenization levels, and other factors, as previously reported by TOI. Despite some reports of issues with the SiG-716 rifles, the Army has emphasized that these US-origin rifles offer a longer effective range, greater lethality, and higher recoil compared to the indigenous INSAS (5.56×51 mm) or AK-47 rifles.
The Army also confirmed that it has been using ammunition manufactured by Indian ordnance factories for the SiG-716 rifles. “These rifles are equipped with Picatinny rails, allowing for the attachment of various equipment and accessories, such as optical sights, under-barrel grenade launchers (UBGL), forehand grips, bipods, and laser pointers, without any modifications,” an officer noted.
