A T-90MS Main Battle Tank demonstrates its mobility

India's CCS approved in early April the procurement of 464 of these tanks for the Indian Army

by Rahul Bedi

India's Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) has approved the INR134.48 billion (USD1.93 billion) procurement of 464 Russian-made T-90MS main battle tanks (MBTs) for the Indian Army (IA).

Official sources told Jane's that the move by the CCS, which convened in early April and is headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is the penultimate step in the process of acquiring the MBTs and will be followed by the signing of a contract between India's Ministry of Defence (MoD) and Russia's arms export agency, Rosoboronexport, during the next few months.

The MoD's Defence Acquisition Council approved the procurement of the tanks in November 2016.