Chandru

Experts said the development was an indicator of the small arms manufacturing business coming of age in the private sector and the Indian military and paramilitary would have cheaper indigenous options to choose from. The four-year-old firm SSS Defence emerged as the lowest bidder for a contract to upgrade a small number of Indian Army’s AK-47 assault rifles, beating off competition from established Israeli rival Fab Defense, as reported by Hindustan Times on Sunday. Thus far it has built prototype weapons such as assault rifles and sniper rifles at a ‘bridge’ or make-shift facility in Bengaluru, and the new facility will allow the Bengaluru-based firm to ramp up annual production to 20,000 assault rifles and 3,000 sniper rifles depending on orders, Krishnan said.