ICOMM, CARACAL Collaborates for Co-production of Small Arms in India

“ICOMM will manufacture a complete range of small arms. That includes modern CMP 9 submachine guns, versatile EF pistols, CSR 50 anti-material sniper rifles, CAR 814, CAR 816 and CAR 817 tactical rifles, CSR 338 and CSR 308 bolt action sniper rifles, CAR 817 DMR tactical sniper rifle, and CSA 338 semi-automatic sniper rifle.”

ICOMM on Tuesday partnered with a UAE-based company CARACAL for the transfer-of-technology (ToT) for local manufacturing of arms for the domestic markets under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

The ICOMM, a subsidiary of Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL) got this deal by signing a partnership and licensing agreement. 

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What ICOMM and CARACAL will Manufacture?

ICOMM will manufacture a complete range of small arms. That includes modern CMP 9 submachine guns, versatile EF pistols, CSR 50 anti-material sniper rifles, CAR 814, CAR 816 and CAR 817 tactical rifles, CSR 338 and CSR 308 bolt action sniper rifles, CAR 817 DMR tactical sniper rifle, and CSA 338 semi-automatic sniper rifle.

The deal between these companies signed at the ongoing IDEX 2023 Defence Exhibition in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

The CARACAL, UAE-based largest small arms manufacturer and supplier, which has been sourcing components for its manufacturing from Indian markets, has been in talks with the Indian company for the last few months for the co-production of small arms in the country.

It will make the CARACAL eligible to do business under Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2020. 

Sumanth P, Chief of ICOMM, said, “India’s defence industry is on a strong path to develop its sovereign manufacturing capabilities. This agreement exemplifies the commitment shown by CARACAL to aid India’s ambitions towards making the defence sector self-sufficient.” 

The collaboration happened when the Indian Army had the most need of acquiring small arms and it was not being fulfilled.

The CARACAL-ICOMM tie-up will bring another player to the industry which has companies like SSS Defence, PSUs, PLR which is a joint venture between Adani Group and Israel Weapon Industries (IWI), and others.

Indian Finance Ministry will not merge GST tax rates in 2023/24

Synopsis

“Nirmala Sitharaman, the Finance Minister of India, projected 12% growth in net GST collection in the 2023/24 budget presented last week. The federal government is looking forward to collecting 8.54 trillion Indian rupees ($103.20 billion) for 2022/23.”

Indian finance currently has five tax rates applicable in its GST system, bringing several state taxes under one roof. Tax rates range from 0% to 28%. In the next fiscal year, India is not going to remodel its Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, a senior official said on Monday. The move will be further delayed which has been in consideration for more than a year to simplify its tax rate structure and minimize the burden on consumers.

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In 2021, the finance ministry looked forward to remodeling the tax by combining two tax rates and lowering the levy on a number of items. Some have criticized the old regime of GST which was done five years earlier having too many tiers.

Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra said in an interview, “Right now, we are just looking to maintain stability (in tax rates), a stable tax regime. Minor changes will always be there… major taxation change like a merger of tax rates, we are not contemplating in 2023/24,”Malhotra further added the government would surely want to have fewer tax tiers but did not provide a timeline.

The government is also looking to make its taxation system simple for custom duty which is not included in the GST regime, by having fewer rates. 

Nirmala Sitharaman, the Finance Minister of India, projected a 12% growth in net GST collection in the 2023/24 budget presented last week. The federal government is looking forward to collecting 8.54 trillion Indian rupees ($103.20 billion) for 2022/23. 

The government is also looking forward to collecting 250 billion rupees using a windfall tax on petrol, diesel, and turbine fuel that was imposed in July 2022.