The deals may involve as many as 5,000 trucks or lorries, according to sources

Indian armed forces—comprising the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force—are set to place logistical support-related orders to the tune of Rs 45,000-50,000 crore, and the Ministry of Defence has issued a request for information in this regard, sources told Zee Business. A request for information (RFI) is a business process that involves the formal collection of information about potential suppliers of a good or service in order to decide the next steps.

The deals may involve as many as 5,000 trucks or lorries, the sources said. They also said that there are three possible front-runners for the orders: TATA Advanced Systems (part of the TATA group), Bharat Forge (part of the Kalyani Group) and Ashok Leyland.

The deals are likely to be completed over a period of 4-5 years, the sources said.

As per the RFI issued by the Ministry of Defence, the orders may include 7.5 ton and 2.5 ton trucks as part of the strong order book. The trucks are likely to be deployed in different sectors and locations, and may include vehicles capable of operating on different terrains such as snow and sand.

According to market expert Sandeep Jain, the country's defence space is the talk of the town with increased government focus on the sector along with infrastructure.

"Indian defence firms have been winning significant orders from international markets as well, and all of the three companies are suitable for this order... An order win by Bharat Forge will likely have an impact on the company's share price," said Jain, who is bullish on defence, and has HAL and BDL as his top picks from the sector.