Soldiers of the Indian Army have been protected against AK-47 bullet strikes with the new `Made in India' bulletproof helmets. The helmets weigh from 1.2 kg to 1.4 kg, have been specially designed to provide low trauma to provide protection from head injuries, has a support for various accessories, including the visors, face shields and night vision goggles and are capable of protecting soldiers from the AK-47 bullets which flies at twice the speed of sound.

Soldiers of the Indian Army have been protected against AK-47 bullet strikes with the new `Made in India' bulletproof helmets. These helmets were the first major contract for modern composite helmets placed under Make in India initiative.

A contract between Kanpur-based MKU Ltd and the Ministry of Defence was inked during the tenure of the then defence minister Late Manohar Parrikar in 2016 for 1, 58.279 bulletproof helmets. Vaibhav Gupta, director and head of domestic operations, confirmed to Financial Express Online that the "contract has successfully been completed by the company earlier this year in April. And the helmets supplied are already in use by the Indian Army in critical operation areas and are also being used by the Indian Navy."

Gupta added that about 55,000 of the 1.58 lakh bullet-proof helmets are equipped with communication systems to be used by commanders, which have been completely designed and manufactured in India by MKU. He said the helmets were selected after undergoing trials by the Indian Army in all types of terrains and firing trials.

Gupta said that his company has delivered on export orders for helmets from Chile, Philippines, Singapore, Egypt and Nepal in the recent past.

Specifications of The Helmet

1. The helmets are comfortable and weigh from 1.2 kg to 1.4 kg

2. They have been specially designed to provide low trauma to provide protection from head injuries

3. It has a support for various accessories, including the visors, face shields and night vision goggles

4. They are capable of protecting soldiers from the AK-47 bullets which flies at twice the speed of sound

The new bulletproof helmets will be replacing the 'bulletproof patka' that the soldiers in the Indian Army have been using since the 1990s.