The Defence Ministry has signed a Rs 661.50 crore contract with BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited for BrahMos fire control systems and launchers for Indian Navy ships. The deal was inked in New Delhi on Tuesday in the presence of Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh. Placed under the Buy (Indian-IDDM) category, it mandates a minimum 68 per cent indigenous content, drawing Indian industry including MSMEs into the supply chain. The ministry said the project will generate employment over three years and marks a milestone in indigenising advanced military technology. The BrahMos system fitted on frontline warships is the Navy's primary surface-to-surface missile for maritime strike operations. It can hit land and sea targets at extended ranges with pinpoint accuracy at supersonic speed. The missile flies at 2.8 Mach, with a standard range up to 290 km and extended variants reaching beyond 400 km. It skims the sea at 5 to 10 metres in its terminal phase to evade radar, and carries a 200 to 300 kg conventional warhead. BrahMos Aerospace is a joint venture of DRDO and Russia's NPO Mashinostroeyenia.