Defence Ministry signs contract with L&T for indigenous Modular Bridges

The Ministry of Defence on Wednesday approved the proposal to indigenously manufacture 41 sets of Modular Bridges for the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army, the official said.

According to the Defence Ministry, the move is taken to boost the indigenization of defence equipment under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'.

These bridges have been designed and developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and shall be produced by Larsen and Toubro (L-T) as a DRDO-nominated production agency.

The contract for the procurement of Modular Bridges was signed with L and T on February 8, at an estimated cost of over Rs 2,585 crore.

"Each set of Modular bridges shall consist of seven carrier vehicles based on 8x8 Heavy Mobility Vehicles and two launcher vehicles based on 10x10 Heavy Mobility Vehicles. Each set shall be capable of mechanically launching a single-span fully decked 46-meter assault bridge. The bridge can be employed over various types of obstacles like canals and ditches with quick launching and retrieval capabilities," the ministry said in an official statement.

It further said that the equipment is highly mobile, versatile, rugged, and capable of keeping pace with wheeled and tracked mechanized vehicles.

The modular bridges will replace the manually-launched Medium Girder Bridges (MGB) that are currently being used in the Indian Army.

The indigenously designed and manufactured Modular bridges shall have many advantages over the MGB such as increased span, less time for construction and mechanical launching with retrieval capability.

"The procurement of these bridges will give a major boost to the bridging capability of the Indian Army on the Western Front," the ministry said.

The project will showcase India's progress in designing and developing world-class military equipment and pave the way for enhancing defence exports to friendly countries.