The Indian Army will soon receive an indigenous system that can mark minefields at a faster rate and with minimal human intervention.
The state-owned defense company BEML has recently rolled out the first prototype of the minefield marking equipment.
The ‘Mechanical Minefield Marking Equipment Mk-II’ vehicle is based on the BEML TATRA 6×6 truck chassis. It has been developed through a transfer of technology (ToT) from the Research & Development Establishment Engineers (R&DE Engineers), part of the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO).
This project is aimed at boosting India’s self-reliance in the defense sector under the Modi government’s ‘Aatmnirbhar Bharat’ Project.
The MMME Mk-II prototype was rolled out at a virtual ceremony, in the presence of BEML’s CMD MV Rajasekar and DRDO Director, R&D (Engrs) VV Parliker. Also present were Accurate Group’s CMD Kiran Jadhav and other valued partners from Dynalog (India) Ltd, Electro-pneumatics & Hydraulics (I) Pvt Ltd and Adroit System Pvt Ltd. The BEML team was headed by Director (Defence) AK Srivastav.
“BEML had signed a ToT agreement during the ‘Bandhan’ event in presence of the Defence Minister during DEFEXPO 2020 and is executing the project by partnering with a number of MSMEs” PSUWatch quoted a statement by the defense public sector undertaking.
The minefield marking equipment will undergo various phases of testing and evaluation by the Indian Army, following which BEML is expecting an order for more than 55 vehicles from the Ministry of Defense.
The vehicle will enable quicker marking of the minefields semi-automatically with minimal human intervention. It can do fencing or marking at a minimum rate of 1.2 kilometers per hour with an inter-picket spacing of 15 meters.
The MMME Mk-II is suitable for the plain areas of Punjab and the semi-desert/desert terrain of Rajasthan in all weather conditions.
According to reports, the system can store 500 pickets and a 15,000-meter polypropylene rope, assisting the Indian Army’s combat engineers to do their work more effectively and with greater accuracy and output.
The system includes the carrier vehicle, mechanical subsystem, pneumatic subsystem, electrical subsystem, and electronic subsystem with selected sub-vendors, according to the report.
“We are proud to be a partner with this project in our quest to achieve ‘Atmanirbhrata’. The equipment will greatly benefit the Indian Army during operations. I am sure that this project would be the harbinger for many more projects to come,” BEML’s CMD MV Rajasekar was quoted as saying by PSUWatch.
