Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) handed over Authority Holding Sealed Particulars (AHSP) of Akash Weapon System (Indian Army Version) to Missile Systems Quality Assurance Agency (MSQAA) in Hyderabad on December 3. The handing over was held at Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) which, as a nodal agency, has designed and developed the Akash weapon system. The Technical Specification & Quality Document and the drawing of complete weapon system elements were sealed and handed over by Project Akash to MSQAA as part of AHSP transfer.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has congratulated DRDO, the Indian Army, and the industry, terming the AHSP transfer as a landmark event. He exuded confidence that this would go a long way in fulfilling the requirement of services.

Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO Dr Samir V Kamat congratulated the Project Akash team for the first AHSP transfer from the Missile cluster to MSQAA for such a complex system involving missiles and multiple ground systems. He said, the transfer process will enable the roadmap for future missile systems, which are under production.

Akash is the first state-of-the-art indigenous surface-to-air missile system which has been with Armed Forces for nearly a decade defending the Indian skies and providing national security. It is inducted by the Indian Army and Indian Air Force with an order value worth Rs 30,000 crore, which is one of the largest single system orders for an indigenous missile system.

Apart from DRDL, a number of other DRDO labs are involved in the development of the system. These include Research Centre Imarat; Electronics & Radar Development Establishment; Research & Development Establishment (Engineers); Integrated Test Range; Armament Research & Development Establishment; High Energy Materials Research Laboratory and Vehicles Research Development Establishment. The systems are produced by Bharat Dynamics Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited, Larsen & Toubro, Tata Advanced Systems Limited, Electronics Corporation of India Limited, BEML Limited along with Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and other industries partners.

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