India 'Urgently' seeks MH 60 Romeo Seahawk helicopters from US, estimated cost of USD $2 Billion
Washington, Nov 17: India has sought from the US 24 multi-role MH-60 'Romeo' anti-submarine helicopters for its Navy at an estimated cost of USD 2 billion, defence industry sources here said Friday.
India has been in need of these formidable anti-submarine hunter helicopters for more than a decade now.
The deal is expected to be finalised in a few months, informed sources told PTI, days after US Vice President Mike Pence held a successful meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Singapore on the sidelines of a regional summit.
India has sent a letter of request to the US for an "urgent requirement" of 24 multi-role helicopters MH 60 Romeo Seahawk, sources said.
In recent months, there has been acceleration in defence ties between the two countries, with the Trump administration opening up America's high-tech military hardware for India's defence needs.
Bilateral defence relationship was on top of the agenda of the Modi-Pence meeting in Singapore on Wednesday.
The meeting is likely to be followed by a summit-level bilateral between Prime Minister Modi and US President Donald Trump in Argentina on the sidelines of the G-20 meeting on November 30 and December 1. Neither side has confirmed the meeting yet.
According to sources, the MH-60 Romeo deal is expected to have an offset requirement. Sources indicated that India plans to follow up this urgent requirement with a long-term plan to manufacture 123 of these helicopters in India.
Currently deployed with the US Navy as the primary anti-submarine warfare anti-surface weapon system for open ocean and littoral zones, Lockheed Martin's MH-60R Seahawk helicopter is considered the world's most advanced maritime helicopter.
According to industry experts, it is the most capable naval helicopter available today designed to operate from frigates, destroyers, cruisers and aircraft carriers. MH-60 Romeo Seahawks would add lethal capabilities of the Indian Navy, which experts say is the need of the hour given the aggressive behavior of China in the Indian Ocean region.
Lockheed over the years has emerged as a major American supplier of state-of-the-art defence military equipment.
"With this Seahawk deal the overall US-India defense trade will surpass USD 20 billion," an industry source said.
"The pipeline of opportunities for US defense firms can result in another USD 5 billion of sales in the next few years," the source added.
According to US Naval Air System Command, the MH-60R Seahawk missions are anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, surveillance, communications relay, combat search and rescue, naval gunfire support and logistics support.
As the Navy's next generation submarine hunter and anti-surface warfare helicopter, the MH-60R Seahawk is considered to be the cornerstone of the Navy's Helicopter Concept of Operations.
The MH-60R and its mission systems have replaced the US naval fleet's legacy SH-60B and SH-60F aircraft.
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Surat spiritual guru among seven held in Rs 2.38 crore fake currency racket in Ahmedabad
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Ahmedabad (PTI): City police has seized high-quality counterfeit Indian currency with a face value of Rs 2.38 crore and apprehended seven persons, officials said on Thursday.
Acting on a tip-off, the crime branch apprehended the accused, including a Surat-based spiritual and yoga teacher, when they arrived here on Wednesday, and seized 42,000 fake notes Rs 500 denomination.
Mukesh Thummar, Ashok Mavani, Ramesh Bhalar, Divyesh Rana, Pradip Jotangiya, Bharat Kakadiya and a woman allegedly brought the high-quality Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) in an SUV which was intercepted near Amraiwadi area, said Deputy Commissioner of Police Ajit Rajian.
Pradip Jotangiya is a 'spiritual and yoga teacher' at Shree Satyam Yog Foundation in Surat. The SUV had a "VVVIP" sticker and a plate reading "Shri Satyam Yog Foundation Recognized by Ayush Mantralay, Govt. of India".
Currency bundles were recovered from a black bag and concealed packaging inside the vehicle, the official said, adding that the process to arrest the accused was underway.
A crime branch team was immediately sent to Surat, and in coordination with the Surat crime branch, another Rs 28 lakh in fake currency was seized from a house where notes were being printed. Some equipment was also seized, DCP Rajian added.
Mukesh Thummar was allegedly the kingpin of the racket and arranged equipment and raw material including printers and paper cutting machines, as per an official release. Counterfeit currency was being printed at the place for the last four months, it added.
The accused had procured security thread paper resembling RBI markings from Chinese sources through e-commerce platforms such as Alibaba, it said.
Probe also revealed that photo-editing software and AI-based platforms such as ChatGPT were used to refine the design, layout, and visual features of counterfeit notes. One of the accused had expertise in graphic editing and printing processes.
The accused initially tested the counterfeit notes by using them in a few transactions. After gaining confidence that the fake currency was not being detected, they engaged agents to produce additional notes, Rajian said.
The accused will be produced before a court later on Thursday and police will seek their custody, he said.
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