In another boost to its defence capabilities, India has now developed its first-ever indigenously made 9mm machine pistol 'ASMI'. As per the Ministry of Defence, the weapon has been jointly developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Army.
It has been developed by a young officer from Infantry School Lt Col Prasad Bansod in a record time of four months. The weapon has the capability of firing the in-service 9 mm ammunition. The weapon has been named “Asmi” which means 'pride', 'Self-Respect' and 'Hard Work'.
A press statement from DRDO informed that the Army's infantry school in Mhow and the DRDO's Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in Pune have designed and developed the weapon.
"The machine pistol fires the in-service 9mm ammunition and sports an upper receiver made from aircraft-grade aluminium and lower receiver from carbon fibre. A 3 dimensional printing process has been used in designing and prototyping of various parts," the statement read.
"The machine pistol is likely to have production cost under Rs 50,000 each and has potential for exports," it added.
The upper receiver of ASMI is made from Aircraft grade Aluminium while the lower receiver is created from Carbon Fibre. The weapon has an overall empty weight of less than 2 Kg and it features an 8-inch barrel along with 33 rounds high capacity magazine.
The weapon has huge potential in armed forces as a personal weapon for various missions, including in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations.
