The defence ministry on Monday approved the procurement of arms and military equipment worth Rs 2,290 crore including around 72,000 Sig Sauer assault rifles from the United States, officials said. The procurement proposals were approved at a meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the defence ministry's highest decision-making body on procurement.

Besides clearing the proposal to buy the rifles, the other notable acquisitions approved by the DAC include procurement of smart anti- airfield weapon (SAAW) systems for the Navy and the Indian Air Force at an approximate cost of Rs 970, the officials said. "The DAC headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh accorded approval for various arms and equipment worth Rs 2,290 crore," the defence ministry said.

The cost of procurement of the Sig Sauer assault rifles for the frontline troops of the Indian Army will be Rs 780 crore, officials said. They said the DAC also accorded approval forprocurement of Static HF Tans-receiver sets under the buy Indian category at a cost of Rs 540 crore. The HF radio sets will enable seamless communication for the field units of the Army and the Air Force.

The military equipment are being procured at a time Indian Army is locked in a bitter border row with China in eastern Ladakh.