The Indian Army ordered a fresh batch of the 73,000 SIG716 rifles, after an initial contract of the 72,400 rifles. This latest contract is part of the Indian Armed Forces modernization program. The successful fielding and overwhelming soldier acceptance led to this follow-on award for an additional 73,000 rifles, SIG SAUER said in a press release.
“We are proud to be a partner in the modernization effort of the Indian Army, and prouder still that the SIG716 rifle achieves the Ministry of Defence’s modernization goals with the second largest army in the world,” began Ron Cohen, President and CEO, SIG SAUER, Inc.
The SIG716 is an enhanced AR platform chambered in 7.62 NATO featuring a 16-inch barrel, M-LOK™ handguard, and a 6-position telescoping stock. SIG SAUER designs and builds the SIG716 rifles for the Indian Army and for all of its customers in the United States.
Indian Army is also procuring a huge quantity of the Made-in-India, Russian-origin AK-203 assault rifles. The Indian Army plans to distribute these rifles to troops stationed in the Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) sector as well as those positioned along the Indo-Pakistan international border. Additionally, it is anticipated that the Indian Army will also equip troops deployed at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) on the Indo-China border with SIG716 rifles.
Umair Aslam is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Global Defense Insight. He has worked as a defense journalist reporting on military modernization programs, defense industry, arms procurement, and emerging technologies.
