Big milestone: India’s first 100% indigenous Ak-203 ‘Sher’ assault rifle made, test-fired at Amethi factory

NEW DELHI: In a big milestone for indigenous defence production, Indo-Russian Rifles Private Limited (IRRPL), a joint venture established between Delhi and Moscow in 2019 to locally manufacture AK-203 assault rifles under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, has successfully manufactured and test-fired the first 100% indigenous AK-203 rifle, named ‘Sher’, at its Korwa ordnance facility in Amethi.Maj Gen S K Sharma, CEO & MD of IRRPL, disclosed this in a post recently. “A moment of immense pride for all of us at IRRPL. We have successfully produced and fired the first AK-203 (Sher) rifle made with 100% Indian components and input materials. What makes this achievement truly special is that every single component and every input material going into this rifle has been sourced from Indian industry. This is not merely localisation of selected components; it is true, end-to-end “100% Genuine Indigenisation” of the rifle. This is Atmanirbhar Bharat in action.” he said.Maj Gen Sharma informed that the first 100% indigenised rifle has successfully undergone firing, including burst firing, and the initial results are extremely encouraging. “We are now working towards making the requisite number of 100% indigenised prototypes for handing over to the Army for trials during Sept 2026,” he said.On the rate of production, the IRRPL CEO said, “Very soon, IRRPL will be moving towards a production rate of one AK-203 (Sher) every 100 seconds.”In his post, he also revealed that due to IRRPL efforts towards capacity enhancement, indigenisation and production optimisation, they are able to advance the delivery timeline of the approximately 6 lakh rifles to the Indian Army by almost one year.The AK-203 rifle is a modern, gas-operated, 7.62x39mm assault rifle combining the legendary reliability of the Kalashnikov platform with advanced ergonomics, modular accessory rails, and high-precision targeting for contemporary combat environments. It can fire 700 rounds per minute and has an effective range of up to 800 metres. AK-203 is significantly superior to the older INSAS rifle, offering greater lethality, better ergonomics, and flawless operational reliability. The Indian military is inducting over 6 lakh locally manufactured AK-203 assault rifles to replace the ageing INSAS rifles.