 | |
| Company type | Public Sector Undertaking |
|---|---|
| Industry | Defence Production |
| Predecessor | Ordnance Factory Board |
| Founded | 1 October 2021; 3 years ago (2021-10-01) |
| Headquarters | Ammunition Factory Khadki,, |
Key people | Prakash Agarwala,IOFS (Chairman & Managing Director) & (Director Finance) Rakesh Ojha, (Director Operations) & (Director HR) |
| Products | |
| Owner | Government of India |
| Divisions |
|
| Website | https://munitionsindia.in |
Munitions India Limited (MIL) is an Indian state-owned defence company, headquartered inPune, India, established in 2021 as part of the restructuring and corporatisation of theOrdnance Factory Board into seven differentPublic Sector Undertakings.[1][2][3] Munitions India primarily manufacturesammunition,explosives,rockets andbombs for the use of theIndian Armed Forces, foreign militaries and domestic civilian use.
The budget allocated for MIL has seen increase in 2020s. The defencePSU was allocated a budget of Rs 577 crore in FY2023, Rs. 580 crore in FY2024 (RE) and Rs 745.45 crore in FY2025, highest among the seven defence PSUs. This is a part of infrastructure modernisation plan and in order to increase the war reserves of the Indian Armed Forces to sustain long-drawn wars. The sum is to be invested in modernising equipment, increasing production capacity and including new manufacturing lines for ammunition of 30mm and 40mmgrenade launchers.[4]
Some notable products of Munitions India include:[5]
As of February 2020,IIT Madras, in partnership withIIT Kanpur,Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) andResearch Centre Imarat (RCI), is working on redesigning an existing 155 mm shell usingramjet propulsion that can cover 60 km+ range. It will be made compatible withHaubits FH77,Dhanush,K9 Vajra-T andDRDO ATAGS. The shell will incorporate a Precision Guidance Kit for trajectory correction. IIT Madras will ensure that Munitions India can manufacture the shells. Prototype is expected to be developed within three to fove years as the design was ready. As pf then, many technologies were proven already and further facilities for lab and prototype testing woulld be required like advancedwind tunnel.[7]
Reports emerged in February 2024, that Munitions India Limited along withIndian Institute of Technology Madras is developing the first 155 mm Smart Ammunition for the Indian ArmyRegiment of Artillery. The developmental time is about 2 years. The goal of this partnership is to improve artillery shell accuracy and lethality at the time of terminal impact. The munitions can be launched from155 mm 39- and 45-calibre guns includingDhanush,DRDO ATAGS andK9 Vajra. The shells will can achieve aCircular Error Probability (CEP) of 10 m (33 ft) against the current conventional ammunitions 500 m (1,600 ft) CEP, a 50 times improvement. This will require housing of cutting-edge technologies such as miniature electronics and sensors with guidance, navigation, andcontrol systems. The 155 mm Smart Ammunition shells will primarily utilizeNavICsatellite guidance to increase accuracy and have aGPS-back up option. In order to meet different tactical needs, the 155 mm Smart Ammunition is made to work with current artillery guns and has sophisticated characteristics including fin stabilization,canard control, and a three-mode fuse operation.[8] A minimum range of 8 km and a maximum range of 38 km are anticipated. In addition, this Smart shell has three different explosion modes: delayed, height of burst, and point detonation.[9][10][11][12]
The UAE purchased 40,000 and 50,000 155 mm artillery ammunition in 2017 and 2019, respectively. In 2017 and 2019, the order was valued at approximately $40 million and $46 million, respectively. The known buyers of 155 mm shells have been theUnited Arab Emirates andArmenia. Unidentified European nation—likelyPoland orSlovenia—just bought the artillery munitions, as per reports in February 2024.[13][14]
Videos from Ukraine have recently surfaced, showing the artillery ammunition manufactured in India being used byUkrainian forces inRusso-Ukrainian War. Social media posts in both Russian and Ukrainian languages reported what seemed to be Indian 155mm artillery shells likely falling into Ukraine. It was rumored that the weaponry consisted of MIL-produced HE ERFB BT shells.[13][15]
MIL and its partner, Nadrah Company, inked a $225 million deal at World Defense Show 2024 to provide artillery ammunition toSaudi Arabia.[16]
As of March 2024, Munitions India has export orders worth ₹6,000 crore, to be supplied till 2026-27. The leading customers are UAE, Vietnam and one undisclosed country from Europe.[17]
In FY 2023-24, about Rs. 2,000 crores (i.e. 28.5%) of contracts of MIL was from export orders. The total business for the same time period was of Rs. 7,000 crore by value.[4]