VISAKHAPATNAM: The Indian Armed Forces would have Land Attack Supersonic Missiles (LASM) inducted in their arsenal by 2009.
These missiles, possessed by a few other countries in the world, would enhance the combat capabilities of the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force, said DRDO Chief Controller (R&D) A Sivathanu Pillai.
Addressing a press conference at Naval Science and Technological Laboratory here on Thursday, Pillai said the LASM have already been tested for the Army and Navy and they are pending integration with the Air Force.
The process of developing Underwater Autonomous Vehicles which would be camouflaged, would be completed by the end of 2008.
As regards production of weapons, Pillai said Indias public and private sector industries must gear up to meet the requirements of the countrys defence weaponry. Out of the $ 30 billion Defence spending in the next five years, equipment valued at $10 billion is planned for manufacture indigenously.
The small players in the field of Defence production, could form into a consortium with the major industries for both designing and manufacturing.
This would be providing an integrated platform for undertaking Defence contracts and facilitate their speedy execution.