CHANDIGARH: In a first the Indian Army got 96 specialist mobility vehicle (SMV) N1200 ATOR all-terrain four wheel drive vehicle under the Make in India initiative from a Chandigarh based company thus making it the first defense force in the world to operationally deploy vehicles of this advanced technology with the ability to go-anywhere be it dense forests, shaky grounds, gravel, peat, marsh, swamps, snow, ice, lake or rivers.These vehicles are being manufactured at JSW Gecko’s newly set-up manufacturing unit in Chandigarh and haves also been showcased by Indian Army during this year’s Republic Day parade.Talking with the TNIE, Jaskirat Singh Nagra director of JSW Gecko Motors said,“ Beginning in July 2021, the Indian Army conducted exhaustive trials of the SMV N1200 across various challenging environments, including desert, high-altitude, rainforest, and the treacherous terrain of the Rann of Kutch. Simultaneously, JSW Gecko Motors collaborated with Copato to localize the components used in the SMV, ensuring that these vehicles could be manufactured under the Make in India initiative, as mandated by the Union Government.’’”In June 2023 we were awarded a contract to manufacture 96 units of SMVs for deployment by the Indian Army in various forward sectors. A state-of-the-art manufacturing facility was established in Chandigarh in record time, and full-scale production commenced in January 2024. We have successfully delivered the 96 of these vehicles to the army in June and July this year, making it the first military force in the world to operationally deploy vehicles of this advanced technology. The company is now preparing to supply these vehicles, along with others using similar technology, to the Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Assam Rifles, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), as well as other corporate and institutional clients,’’ said Nagra. The SMV N1200 ATOR is designed to enhance mobility, operational efficiency, and safety in diverse scenarios, ensuring optimal performance in the most challenging conditions. These vehicles are designed with unique capabilities that enable them to traverse a wide range of terrains ( Ice glaciers and Snow Mountains, Deep Mud, Rocky fields, Loose sand, High and dense grasslands, Marsh lands, Swamps and Desert).These capabilities make the Specialist Mobility Vehicles exceptionally versatile, capable of operating seamlessly across various challenging environments, including the ability to travel over water and return to land effortlessly. Its standout feature of this amphibious vehicle is its ability to break through ice and swim before transitioning back to land, making it exceptionally versatile in challenging environments. Nagra said, “Over the past three years, the SMV has undergone successful trials with Army at Rann of Kutch, Pokharan, Tsogtsalu, Jaisalmer, for Assam Rifles at Haflong, at Sir Creek, Rann of Kutch, Dhubri for Border Security Force, at Dhubri with Central Reserve Police Force and for National Disaster Response Force at Manesar, Prayagraj and Mirzapur besides for Indo Tibetan Border Police at Pangong Tso.’’” This vehicle can be used as, for logistics, search and rescue, medical evacuation and command centre. We have offered two vehicles to NDRF for free to bolster it’s capabilities in responding to natural disasters, including heavy rainfall, floods, and landslides,’’ he said and added that more orders are expected from the army and also from paramilitary forces.
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