New Delhi: The Cabinet Committee on Security has approved the acquisition of more than 200 BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles and associated systems that will be fitted on Indian warships, with the significant capability enhancement for the navy expected to cost around Rs.19,000 crore, officials aware of the matter said on Thursday.

These weapons will be a mix of BrahMos missiles that can strike targets at 290 km and its extended range variant with a range of almost 500 km, the officials said, asking not to be named. The contract is expected to be signed before the end of the financial year 2023-24, Hindustan Times has learnt.

It is the fastest cruise missile in the world with a speed of Mach 2.8, nearly three times the speed of sound. BrahMos variants can be launched from land, air and sea, and all three variants are in service in the Indian armed forces.

Also, India is set to deliver BrahMos missiles to the Philippines in March, two years after the two countries signed a deal worth almost $375 million to equip the Philippine Marines with three batteries of the missiles. This is the first export order for the BrahMos missile developed by India and Russia.

India has set a defence export target of Rs.35,000 crore by 2024-25. In November 2022, Indian defence firm Kalyani Strategic Systems Limited won an export order worth $155.5 million for supplying artillery guns to Armenia, the first order won by a local company for the 155 mm weapon system. Kalyani will execute the order by 2025. That order came on the back of Armenia choosing to buy the Pinaka rocket system from India.

Countries in South America, Africa, central Asia and Southeast Asia have also shown interest in weapons and systems manufactured by India.

Last year, Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari called for the development of a smaller version of the BrahMos missile for fighter jets such as the MiG-29, Mirage 2000 and the indigenous light combat aircraft Tejas, stressing that the weapon can be used very effectively for land attack.

Currently, only IAF’s Sukhoi-30MKI fighters are equipped with the air-launched version of the BrahMos, a 2.5-tonne missile. The missile’s land and naval variants are 500 kg heavier than the current air version.

The smaller missile, BrahMos-next generation, is expected to weigh 1.2 tonnes and be more lethal than the current air-launched version, as previously reported by HT.

India is also laying the groundwork to develop an even longer-range BrahMos missile, capable of striking targets more than 800 km away.

In 2020, the country upgraded its capabilities to keep a watch on the Indian Ocean region and deliver an offensive option swiftly, if necessary, with IAF basing its Su-30 fighters in southern India for the first time, at Thanjavur air force station in Tamil Nadu.

These fighters are equipped with the air-launched version of the BrahMos missile. It provides IAF with the capability to strike sea and land targets from stand-off ranges with pinpoint accuracy in all weather conditions.

Last December, the navy commissioned its latest guided missile destroyer INS Imphal, which became the first Indian warship to have fired the BrahMos missile before entering naval service.