Army chief proud of achieving self-reliance in defence production

Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has said that he is proud of achieving self-reliance in defence production, a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

"Self-reliance in defence production is the hallmark of any country and we are proud of the milestones achieved towards that end," the army chief was cited by the ISPR as saying during his visit to Heavy Industries Taxila (HIT) on Tuesday.

Gen Qamar was briefed about the HIT's capabilities, the progress of ongoing projects and recently undertaken Balancing, Modernisation and Revamping (BMR) measures for the production units, the military's media wing said.

"The COAS visited various facilities and witnessed recently developed enhanced protection solutions and remote weapon systems for tanks, indigenously developed 155mm Artillery gun barrel, ballistic, IED protection of military vehicles and manufacturing, rebuild and upgradation of tanks and Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs)," it added.

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The ISPR added that the COAS witnessed the ongoing research and development projects and lauded the efforts to attain self-reliance through indigenisation in modern technologies of tanks, artillery guns and ballistic protection solutions for vehicles.

The army chief, the statement said, expressed confidence in the expertise of HIT and appreciated the commitment of its chairman, officers and workforce towards transforming it into a modern defence production industry for meeting requirements of the armed forces and Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) at par with international standards.

Earlier, upon his arrival at HIT, Gen Qamar was received by HIT Chairman Major General Syed Aamer Raza.