Police to get major weapon upgrade

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The latest Mammootty-starrer 'Unda' paints a grim picture of the state police with regards to arms and ammunitions available with the force. But, of late, the scenario seems to be different, especially in the wake of threat from Left-Wing Extremists (LWE).
The state police will make a major procurement of arms, ammunition and armoured vehicles under Union home ministry's Modernisation of Police Forces scheme that will include Avtomat Kalashnikova or Automatic Kalashnikov (AK) rifles - popular across the world among armed forces as well as insurgents, rebels and terrorists.
As per the latest government order in this regard, accessed by TOI, the police have been granted a central assistance of Rs 5 crore for procurement of 42 AK-103 assault rifles, hundred 7.62 mm Trichy Assault Rifles, two light armoured troop carriers with underbelly ballistic protection and an anti-mine protector for counter-insurgency operations for all-round protection.
The country is all set to launch indigenous production of AK-103 rifles, on the basis of an agreement with Russia. The AK-103 rifle is gas-operated with magazine capacity of 30 rounds. It can fire 600 rounds per minute.
Said to match the AK-47, the indigenously designed and developed 7.62X39mm TAR (Trichy Assault Rifle) manufactured by Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli, is touted as substitute to Kalashnikov rifles. It can be operated both in automatic and single fire modes and has been developed specifically to address operational requirements of forces deployed in LWE-prone states. The weapon can fire up to 600 rounds per minute in automatic mode and is highly effective up to a distance of 300 metre.
The MPV or mine-protector vehicle is used to carry troops during anti-Maoist operations. It provides armoured protection from explosives and small arms fire and is common used in Maoist-infested states like Chhattisgarh.
In addition, the police will also procure 10 multi-shell launchers, more than 3 lakh cartridges and 500 fragmentation grenades. The police have also been granted another Rs 2 crore for construction of barracks in the LWE-affected districts of Kannur, Wayanad, Kozhikode, Malappuram and Palakkad. The police had last year procured 200 units of 7.62 mm self-loading rifles from Ordinance Factory Thiruchirappalli at a cost of Rs 1.59 crore. The police had also purchased 200 sub-machine gun 9 mm carbine 1A1 from Small Arms Factory, Kanpur.