New Delhi. 19 March 2020. The Indian Armed Forces’ long-standing requirement of a modern state-of-the-art Light Machine Gun (LMG) has finally fructified. The Acquisition Wing of Ministry of Defence has signed the capital acquisition contract with Israel Weapons Industries for procurement of 16,479 LMGs at a cost of Rs 880 crore with the approval of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
It may be recalled that the Defence Acquisition Council had cleared the procurement of these LMGs for all the three forces in February 2018. Bulgaria’s Arsenal, Israel Weapons Industries of Israel and S&T Motiv of South Korea were the companies which were in fray.
The contracted Negev 7.62X51 mm LMG is a combat proven weapon and currently used by several countries around the globe. This LMG will greatly enhance the lethality and range of a soldier vis-a-vis the presently used weapon.
NEGEV NG-7 SF | TECHNICAL DATA
Caliber: 7.62X51mm
Rifling: 4 RH Grooves, 1:12″ twist
Barrel length (mm): 420 (16.5″)
Total length exstended (mm): 1,012
Total length retracted (mm): 942
Weight (Kg) (weapon only): 7.8
Rate of fire (approx. rd./min): 600~750 (position 1 & 2)
The provisioning of this operationally urgent and very critically needed weapon will boost the confidence of the frontline troops and provide much needed combat power to the Armed Forces.
