Missile-maker Bharat Dynamics Ltd on expansion drive

Nagpur: A swelling order book has put defence public sector undertaking, Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL), a company that makes a range of missiles for India's defence services, on an expansion drive.

India's missile maker, Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL), has booked 500 acres of land at the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation's (MIDC) estate at Amravati, with the intention of producing air defence missiles.

It has already bagged a Rs14,000 crore order to produce Akash surface-to-air missiles for the Indian Army, and this huge order, coupled with a smaller sized order for the same missile from the Indian Air Force is one of the main reasons for the company seeking to establish new manufacturing facilities.

The new units are expected to become operational from 2015-16 onwards with Amravati likely to be the first. The PSU will be opening five new units entailing a total investment of up to Rs4000 crore.

The expansion drive is expected to result in the creation of hundreds of new jobs.

Currently BDL has units in Hyderabad and Medak districts in Andhra Pradesh. The major part of work on Akash is expected to continue in Hyderabad itself. There are other orders that can include long range missiles and air-to-air missiles.