Indian Army soldiers and officers to soon carry desi version of Swiss Army knives
Indian Army is procuring them for its infantry troops and they will form a part of individual equipment.
New Delhi: Indian soldiers and officers will soon carry their own version of Swiss Army knife, equipped with a detonator crimper, a wire cutter, a bottle opener for opening “soda bottles”, and a blade which can be used as a dagger in close quarter hand to hand fight.
Indian Army is procuring them for its infantry troops and they will form a part of individual equipment. The army will soon issue an open tender for procuring such a “multi-purpose tool”.
These knives will be able to function in a temperature ranging from minus 20 to plus 50 degree Celsius.
As per the army requirement, the multipurpose tool should come with a long nose plier with universal detonator crimper that could screw and remove maximum 14mm nuts or bolts and crimp universal size detonators. Nose and handle must have adequate hardness to perform routine task easily. It should also be able to cut binding wire upto 12 gauge and strip electric wire ranging from 24 to 12 gauge. The knife should be able to drive and remove cross tip screws, the army sources added.
The knife will carry a wood or bone saw capable of controlled sawing through wood (25mm thick), plastic (10mm thick), aluminum (26 Gauge) and metal tube (22 Gauge).
It will also carry a can and a separate bottle opener which will allow soldiers to open “commercially available canned goods” and “compressed bottle top” like a “soda bottle”.
It should provide independent and automatic locking of components in operational and closed position. It should not cause injury when used with bare hands, the Indian Army said.
These knives will be black, olive Green or in camouflage pattern with matt finish. The army said that these knives should have a durable sheath with loop to fit on belt and should require minimal user maintenance. These should be capable of maintaining its performance in sand and dust.