New Delhi: The Defence Acquisition Council on Tuesday cleared a proposal for the procurement of GSAT-7C Satellite and Ground Hubs for real-time connectivity of Software Defined Radios (SDRs) for the Indian Air Force.
An Acceptance of Necessity was accorded to the proposal worth Rs 2,236 crore on Tuesday. The complete design, development and launching of satellites will be done in India.
This fulfills the long-pending demand of the IAF to get its own communication satellite.
“The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), in its meeting held on November 23 under the Chairmanship of Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh, accorded Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for one Capital Acquisition proposal of Indian Air Force for its modernisation and operational needs amounting to Rs 2,236 Cr under the category of ‘Make in India’,” a statement from the Defence Ministry said.
“The procurement proposal of Air Force was for GSAT-7C Satellite and Ground Hubs for real-time connectivity of Software Defined Radios (SDRs). The project envisages complete design, development and launching of satellite in India,” the Defence Ministry said.
The statement added that the satellite will enhance the ability of armed forces to communicate beyond the enemy lines.
“Induction of GSAT-7C Satellite and Ground Hubs for Software Defined Radios (SDRs) will enhance the ability of our Armed Forces to communicate beyond the Line of Sight (LoS) among one another in all circumstances in a secure mode,” said the statement.
At present, GSAT-7 (Rukmini) and GSAT-7A are India’s dedicated military satellites in India. While Rukmini is exclusively for the Navy, the GSAT-7A is used by IAF and Army.
