India’s long rifle hunt ends with a Russian ‘Sher’
India's rifle procurement saga finally concludes with the introduction of the Russian-made 7.62x51mm AK-203 assault rifle, dubbed the "Sher". The "Sher" rifle is the culmination of a decade-long effort to replace the aging 5.56x45mm INSAS rifles with a more reliable weapon. The British established a rifle factory in Ichapur, Bengal in 1904, which produced 7.62x51mm SLRs for the armed forces until the 1990s.
In 2018, Russia agreed to collaborate with India to manufacture the 7.62x39mm AK-103 assault rifles in India, with complete manufacturing and quality control in India. After several rounds of negotiations, the inter-governmental agreement was signed in January 2019, with the Prime Minister laying the foundation stone of the venture in February 2019.
The 100% indigenous "Sher" rifle was recently delivered to the Army, marking the end of India's long rifle hunt.
Written by urgent.news from The Economic Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
