New Delhi, June 6: The Indian Air Force on Thursday signed a Rs 300 crore deal for buying more than 100 SPICE bombs from Israel. These SPICE bombs are the same ones which were used by the elite force to attack madrasah of Jaish-e-Mohammed in Balakot of Pakistan on February 26.
The SPICE (Smart, Precise Impact, Cost-Effective) bomb is an Israeli-developed, EO/GPS-guided guidance kit for converting air-droppable unguided bombs into precision-guided bombs. The air-to-surface missile is a product of Israeli company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and is in operation since 2003 in Israeli Air Force F-16 squadrons. Indian Air Force Strikes JeM Terror Camps in Balakot, Chakothi and Muzaffarabad, NSA Ajit Doval Briefs PM Narendra Modi on the Strike.
Briefing more about the deal, a top government source said, as quoted by ANI, "A contract for procuring over 100 SPICE bombs with Mark 84 warheads was signed with Israel u der emergency provisions as per which the deliveries would be done in three months time."
SPICE 2000 bombs have a total of 12 control surfaces in 3 groups (fore, mid-body and tail) and have very long glide range, of about 60 kilometres. The IAF's Mirage 2000 jets had fired several 1,000 kgs of "SPICE 2000" bombs on Jaish-e-Mohammed's terrorist training camp in Balakot on February 26, 2019.
This latest development is India's addition to the move of strengthening the Defence department of the country and secure its international borders from foreign threats. Also, the remarkable decision comes hours after Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reviewed defence acquisition issues with top officials on Thursday. Close sources say that he directed them to seek indigenous solutions to meet the forces' requirements to the extent possible. Indian Army to Induct 464 Russian Origin T-90MS Tanks to Deploy Along Pakistan Border
Apart for giving major directions for ministry officials, Singh also reviewed defence cooperation activities with friendly foreign countries (FCCs) and the policy matters pertaining to defence diplomacy, including bilateral, multilateral exercises, capacity building, training and material assistance to FFCs.
It is to be known that on Tuesday the United States had agreed to increase the defence trade relationship with India and batted for a broader security partnership in the Indo-Pacific region. Recently India signed deals with the United States to buy MH-60R Seahawk helicopters (USD 2.6 billion), Apache helicopters (USD 2.3 billion), P-8I maritime patrol aircraft (USD 3 billion), and M777 howitzers (USD 737 million). Indian Navy to Get 16 Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts; Defence Ministry Signs Second Contract.
Along with this, India is also evaluating to support advocacy for the Lockheed Martin F-21 and Boeing F-18/A. Recently a decision was made by the Indian Army to induct 464 Russian-origin T-90 MS battle tanks, at the cost of Rs 13,448.
(With Inputs From Agencies)
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 06, 2019 10:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).