Indian Express:
CCS approves purchase of warships, missiles for Navy
Press Trust of India
New Delhi, July 6, 2006
In a move aimed at bolstering the Navy’s fighting potential, the Cabinet Committee on Security on Thursday approved the purchase of three more Russian stealth warships and 28 submarine-fired cruise missiles.
The three Russian Krivak-class frigates would be acquired at a cost of Rs 5114 crores. The first one would be delivered five years after the signing of the contract and the subsequent two within 12 months after the delivery of the first warship, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee told newsmen after a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Mukherjee said the purchase of the three Russian frigates was a follow-up order to the purchase of three of the same type of warships in the late 1990s. Indian Navy has already inducted three Krivak-class warships that were re-christened Talwar-class.
He said CCS has also approved earmarking of another Rs 400 crores for “certain other equipment” for these stealth warships.
Though, he did not elaborate, highly placed sources said the funds would be used for fitting the new frigates with BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles.
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