Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), consisting of the Indian Ordnance Factories, now known as Directorate of Ordnance (Coordination & Services) was an organisation, under the Department of Defence Production (DDP) of

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...

(MoD),

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

. The 41 Indian Ordnance Factories have been converted into 7 Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs). OFB was the 37th-largest defence equipment manufacturer in the world, 2nd-largest in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an ...

, and the largest in

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

. OFB was the world's largest government-operated production organisation, and the oldest organisation in India. It had a total workforce of about 80,000. It was often called the "Fourth Arm of Defence", and the "Force Behind the Armed Forces" of India. Its total sales were at () in the year 2020–'21. It was engaged in research, development, production, testing, marketing and logistics of a product range in the areas of air, land and sea systems. OFB consisted of forty-one ordnance factories, nine training institutes, three regional marketing centres and four regional controllerates of safety, which are spread all across the country. Every year, 18 March is celebrated as the Ordnance Factory Day in India.

History

Origins

The Indian Ordnance Factories predate all the other organisations like the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four ...

and the

Indian Railways Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...

by over a century. The first Indian ordnance factory can trace its origins back to the year 1712 when the Dutch

Ostend Company The Ostend Company ( nl, Oostendse Compagnie, french: Compagnie d'Ostende), officially the General Company Established in the Austrian Netherlands for Commerce and Navigation in the Indies () was a chartered trading company in the Austrian Nether ...

established a Gun Powder Factory in Ichhapur. In 1787, another

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate ( saltpeter) ...

factory was established at Ichapore; it began production in 1791, and the site was later used as a rifle factory, beginning in 1904. In 1801, Gun Carriage Agency (now known as Gun & Shell Factory, Cossipore) was established at

Cossipore Kashipur (also spelt Cossipur, Kashipur) is a neighbourhood of North Kolkata, in Kolkata district in the Indian state of West Bengal. One of the oldest neighbourhoods of the metropolis, it has a police station. History The East India Company ...

, Calcutta, and production began on 18 March 1802. This is the oldest ordnance factory in India still in existence.

Contributions

The Indian Ordnance Factories have not only supported India through the wars, but also played an important role in building India, with the advancement of technology, and have ushered the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

in India, starting with the first modern steel, aluminium, copper plants of India, first modern electric textile mill of India, first chemical industries of India, established the first engineering colleges of India, as its training schools,https://www.educationforallinindia.com/1949%20Report%20of%20the%20University%20Education%20Commission.pdf sparked India's first war of independence in 1857 with its rifles and bullets, and also played key role in the founding of research and industrial organisations like

ISRO The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO; ) is the national space agency of India, headquartered in Bengaluru. It operates under the Department of Space (DOS) which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman of ...

, DRDO, BDL,

BEL BEL can be an abbreviation for: * The ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 country code for Belgium * ''BEL'' or bell character in the C0 control code set * Belarusian language, in the ISO 639-2 and SIL country code lists * Bharat Electronics Limited, an Indian stat ...

BEML BEML Limited, formerly Bharat Earth Movers Limited, is an Indian Public Sector Undertaking, headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. It manufactures a variety of heavy equipment, such as that used for earth moving, railways, transport a ...

SAIL A sail is a tensile structure—which is made from fabric or other membrane materials—that uses wind power to propel sailing craft, including sailing ships, sailboats, windsurfers, ice boats, and even sail-powered land vehicles. Sails ma ...

, etc.

Timeline

* 1712 – Establishment of the Dutch

's Gun Powder Factory at Ichhapur. * 1775 – Establishment of the Board of Ordnance at Fort William, Kolkata. * 1787 – Establishment of the Gun Powder Factory at Ishapore. * 1791 – Production of Gun Powder begins at Ishapore. * 1801 – Establishment of Gun Carriage Agency at Cossipore, Kolkata. * 1802 – Production begins at Cossipore on 18 March. * 1935 – Indian Ordnance Service was introduced to administer the whole Defence Production Industry of India. * 1954 – Indian Ordnance Service (IOS) renamed to Indian Ordnance Factories Service (IOFS). * 1979 – Ordnance Factory Board is established on 2 April.

Restructuring OFB into seven PSUs

On 17 June 2021, the Defence Ministry announced its plans to split the existing five operating divisions of OFB, in addition to parachutes and opto-electronics, into seven PSUs, wholly owned by the government. It was mentioned that all existing factories and employees will become a part of these seven PSUs. From 1 October 2021, OFB has been dissolved and all the management, control, operations and maintenance has been transferred to 7 newly formed Defence PSUs, namely: * Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Limited (AWE) * Armoured Vehicles Nigam Limited (AVANI) * Gliders India Limited (GIL) * India Optel Limited (IOL) *

Munitions India Limited Munitions India Limited (MIL) is an Indian state-owned defence company, headquartered in Pune, India established in 2021 as part of the restructuring and corporatisation of the Ordnance Factory Board into seven different Public Sector Underta ...

(MIL) *

Troop Comforts Limited Troop Comforts Limited (TCL) is an Indian state-owned defence company, headquartered in Kanpur, India established in 2021 as part of the restructuring and corporatisation of the Ordnance Factory Board into seven different Public sector undertaki ...

(TCL) *

Yantra India Limited Yantra India Limited is an Indian major state-owned defence production PSU, headquartered in Nagpur, India. Established in 2021 as part of the government’s restructuring and corporatisation of the Ordnance Factory Board into seven different ...

(YIL) The new companies were launched and dedicated to the nation on 15 October 2021.

Infrastructure and leadership of OFB

Headquarters

* Ordnance Factory Board, Kolkata * Armoured Vehicles Headquarters, Chennai * Ordnance Equipment Factories Headquarters, Kanpur * Ordnance Factory Board, New Delhi Office * Ordnance Factory Cell, Mumbai * Ordnance Factories Recruitment Centre, Nagpur

Apex Board

The Apex Board was headed by the Director General of Ordnance Factories (DGOF), who acts as the Chairman of the board (ex officio Secretary to Government of India) and consisted of nine other members, who each held the rank of Additional DGOF. Ordnance factories were divided into five operating divisions, depending upon the type of the main products/technologies employed. These were: * Ammunition and Explosives * Weapons, Vehicles & Equipment * Materials and Components * Armoured Vehicles * Ordnance Equipment Group of Factories Each of the above group of factories was headed by a Member/Additional DGOF who was in the rank of Special Secretary to Government of India. The four remaining members were responsible for staff functions, viz personnel, finance, planning and material management, and technical services, and they operated from Kolkata.

Ordnance factories

Each ordnance factory was headed by a General Manager who is in the rank of Additional Secretary to the Government of India.

Training institutes, regional centres and controllerates

* National Academy of Defence Production National Academy of Defence Production provides training to the IOFS officers in areas of technology, management, public administration as induction and re-orientation courses. There were Ordnance Factories Institutes of Learning (OFILs) in Ambajhari, Ambernath, Avadi, Dehradun, Ishapore, Khamaria, Kanpur and Medak. Each OFIL was headed by a principal director, and NADP by a senior principal director. NADP provided training to Group A officers, whilst the other eight institutes imparted training to Group B and Group C employees of the ordnance factories. OFB had Regional marketing centres and Regional controllerates of safety as well.

Joint Ventures

In 2017, the Department of Defence Production under the

opened itself to for Joint Ventures with OFB and DRDO was also tasked with identifying their products and patents, with the scope of commercial production * Indo-Russia Rifles Private Limited (IRRPL), Amethi A joint venture between Ordnance Factory Board (50.5%), Kalashnikov Concern (42%) and Rosonboronexport (7.5%) established to produce AK-203 (7.62×39mm) assault rifles intended for Indian Security Forces.

Indian Ordnance Factories Service (IOFS)

The Indian Ordnance Factories Service ( IOFS) is a civil service of the Government of India. IOFS officers are

Gazetted A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspaper ...

(Group A) defence-civilian officers under the Ministry of Defence. IOFS is a multi-disciplinary composite cadre consisting of technical – engineers (

civil Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience *Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a membe ...

electrical Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...

, mechanical,

electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...

), technologists (

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astrona ...

, automotive, marine, industrial/product design, computer,

nuclear Nuclear may refer to: Physics Relating to the nucleus of the atom: *Nuclear engineering *Nuclear physics *Nuclear power *Nuclear reactor *Nuclear weapon *Nuclear medicine *Radiation therapy *Nuclear warfare Mathematics *Nuclear space * Nuclear ...

optical Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultrav ...

chemical A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., wit ...

, metallurgical,

textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not t ...

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and ho ...

) and non-technical/administrative (

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

, law,

commerce Commerce is the large-scale organized system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions directly and indirectly related to the exchange (buying and selling) of goods and services among two or more parties within local, regional, natio ...

management Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

and

arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

graduates). Technical posts account for about 87% of the total cadre. The doctors (

surgeons In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

and

physicians A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

) serving in OFB belong to a separate service known as the Indian Ordnance Factories Health Service (IOFHS). IOFHS officers are responsible for the maintenance of health of the employees, and the hospitals of OFB. They report directly to the IOFS officers. IOFS and IOFHS are the only two civil services under the Department of Defence Production.

Products

The type of ordnance material produced is very diverse, including various

small arms A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

missile In military terminology, a missile is a missile guidance, guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously ...

rocket A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entire ...

bomb A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechan ...

grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade g ...

s, military vehicles, armoured vehicles,

chemicals A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., wit ...

, optical devices, parachutes, mortars,

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieg ...

pieces plus all associated

ammunition Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weapo ...

propellant A propellant (or propellent) is a mass that is expelled or expanded in such a way as to create a thrust or other motive force in accordance with Newton's third law of motion, and "propel" a vehicle, projectile, or fluid payload. In vehicles, the ...

explosives An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An expl ...

and fuses.

Civilian products

Civilians are required to hold an Arms License (issued only for non-prohibited bore category weapons) in order to buy firearms in India. The following products of the Indian Ordnance Factories Board are available for civilians:

Arms

IOF .22 revolver The IOF .22 revolver is a .22 caliber revolver made by the Indian Ordnance Factory in 2002. The revolver's cylinder can hold eight cartridges and has a single-action and double-action Double action (or double-action) refers to one of two systems in ...

IOF .32 revolver IOF .32 Revolver (also known as IOF 32 Revolver) is a 6-shot handgun designed and manufactured by the Ordnance Factories Organization in India and is meant for short range. Design The revolver is a 'Break Action' self-extracting revolver and use ...

(7.65 mm X 23) * IOF .32 revolver Nirbheek * IOF .32 pistol Ashani * IOF .22 sporting rifle * IOF .315 sporting rifle * IOF .30-06 sporting rifle

Ammunition

* Cartridge Rimfire .22" Ball * Cartridge SA .32" Revolver * Cartridge SA .315" and .30-06 Ball * Cartridge SA 12 Bore 70mm * Cartridge SA 12 Bore 65 mm Special

Military Products

These products are exclusively manufactured for use by the armed forces and are not sold to civilians.

Customers

Armed Forces

The prime customers of Indian Ordnance Factories were the

Indian Armed Forces The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Armed Forces are supported by ...

viz. Indian Army, Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force. Apart from supplying armaments to the Armed Forces, Ordnance Factories also meet the requirements of other customers viz. the Central Armed Police Forces, State Armed Police Forces, Paramilitary Forces of India and the Special Forces of India in respect of arms, ammunition, clothing, bullet proof vehicles, mine protected vehicles etc.

Civil trade

Customers are in the civil sector, central/state government organisations and departments such as

Indian Space Research Organisation The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO; ) is the national space agency of India, headquartered in Bengaluru. It operates under the Department of Space (DOS) which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman of ...

Defence Research and Development Organisation The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) ( IAST: ''Raksā Anūsandhān Evam Vikās Sangaṭhan'') is the premier agency under the Department of Defence Research and Development in Ministry of Defence of the Government of India ...

, Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre, Nuclear Fuel Complex, Aeronautical Development Agency,

Department of Atomic Energy The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''Paramāṇu Ūrjā Vibhāga'') is a department with headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. DAE was established in 1954 by a Presidential Or ...

Department of Telecommunications The Department of Telecommunications, abbreviated to DoT, is a department of the Ministry of Communications of the executive branch of the Government of India. History Telecom services have been recognized the world-over as an important tool for ...

, and State Electricity Boards. Public Sector Undertakings in India (PSUs) such as

HMT Limited HMT Limited, formerly Hindustan Machine Tools Limited, is a state owned company under the control of the Ministry of Heavy Industries, Government of India. It was founded in 1953 as a machine tool manufacturing company, diversifying into watc ...

, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, Bharat Dynamics Limited, private companies and individuals etc. who purchased industrial chemicals, explosives, arms, ammunition, brass ingots, aluminium alloy products for aircraft, steel castings and forgings, vehicles, clothing and leather goods, cables and opto-electronic instruments.

Exports

Arms and ammunition, weapon spares, chemicals and explosives, parachutes, leather and clothing items were exported to more than 30 countries worldwide. * Asia: Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Vietnam, Nepal, Singapore * Europe: Germany, Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, Turkey, Russia, Sweden, France, Switzerland, United Kingdom * Middle East: Oman, Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE * Africa: Kenya, Botswana, Nigeria * North and South America: United States, Canada, Brazil, Chile, Suriname

Notable employees

* Narinder Singh Kapany – Former IOFS officer. Invented fibre optics that revolutionised laparoscopic and endoscopic surgery, telecommunications, power transmission, etc. Named as one of the seven "Unsung Heroes of the 20th century" by Fortune magazine for his

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfre ...

-deserving invention. Known as the "Father of Fibre Optics" and "The Man who Bent Light". Former Professor at

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, Universities of California at Berkeley, Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz. Had more than 150 patents to his credit. Conferred upon with

Padma Vibhushan The Padma Vibhushan ("Lotus Decoration") is the second-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "exceptional and distinguished service". All persons without ...

, the second-highest honour in India, Pravasi Bharatiya Samman, Fellowship of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng). He was also offered the post of Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister of India, by the first Prime Minister of India,

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

. *

Nalini Ranjan Mohanty Nalini Ranjan Mohanty is a retired IOFS officer and former Chairman & Managing Director of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). He is a former president of the Aeronautical Society of India (ASI) and has been the chairman and managing direct ...

- Former IOFS officer. Secured All India 2nd Rank in the Engineering Services Examination of 1965, served as the Chairman & Managing Director of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Director of Kudremukh Iron Ore Company, Mahanadi Coalfields, National Aluminium Company (NALCO), Bharat Earth Movers (BEML). Awarded

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is confe ...

in 2004 by the

for his role in the development of LCA – Tejas. *

Brijmohan Lall Munjal Brijmohan Lall Munjal (1 July 1923 – 1 November 2015) was an Indian entrepreneur and the founder of Hero Group. Early life Munjal was born on 1 July 1923 in Kamalia, undivided India, which is located in the Toba Tek Singh District of present-d ...

- Founder of Hero MotoCorp, the world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer, and Hero Cycles, world's largest cycle manufacturer. Awarded

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished servi ...

. * H. P. S. Ahluwalia – IOFS. First Indian to climb

Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow ...

. Author, mountaineer, social worker. Founder & Chairman of Indian Spinal Injuries Centre. Conferred on with the

Arjuna Award The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjuna, on ...

and

by the Government of India, Fellowship of Royal Geographical Society (FRGS). Also served as a Commissioned officer in the

and Member of Planning Commission (India). *

Santu Shahaney Santu Jouharmal Shahaney was an IOFS officer. He served as the first Indian Director General of the Indian Ordnance Factories. He was awarded Padma Shri in 1962, and Padma Bhushan in 1965, for his contributions during the Indo-China War of 1962 a ...

- IOFS. Served as the Director General Ordnance Factories (DGOF). He was awarded

in 1962, and

in 1965, by the

, in the Civil Service category, for his contributions during the

Indo-China War of 1962 The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tibe ...

and the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 or the Second Kashmir War was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. The conflict began following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was d ...

, respectively.https://www.mha.gov.in/sites/default/files/Year_Wise_main_25042017_0.pdf *

R. M. Muzumdar Ramakant Maheshwar Muzumdar was an IOFS officer. He was the second Indian Director General of the Indian Ordnance Factories. He studied engineering at the University of Cambridge. Muzumdar was awarded the Padma Bhushan in the Civil service catego ...

- IOFS. Second Indian Director General of the Indian Ordnance Factories. He was awarded the

by the Government of India, in 1973, in the Civil service category, for his contributions during the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Dec ...

* Waman Dattatreya Patwardhan - IOFS officer. Developed the solid propellant for India's first space rocket launched from Thumba, and the detonation system of India's first nuclear bomb used in Operation Smiling Buddha. Served at the Ammunition Factory Khadki, and as the first Director of High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL) and the Armaments Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) of the

(DRDO). Awarded

in 1974. *

H. G. S. Murthy Holenarasipuram Govindrao Srinivasa Murthy was an IOFS officer and a space scientist. He was known as one of the "Seven Pioneers of the Indian Space Programme".Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS), and the Space Science & Technology Centre, now known as the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, of the

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO; ) is the national space agency of India, headquartered in Bengaluru. It operates under the Department of Space (DOS) which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman of ...

. Awarded

in 1969. *K. C. Banerjee - IOFS. Received

in 1967, for his contributions during the

, as the General Manager of Rifle Factory Ishapore, that developed and manufactured the 7.62 Self-Loading Automatic Rifle, that played decisive role in India's victory in the

. * O. P. Bahl, an IOFS officer. Received

in 1972, in the civil-service category, as the General Manager of

Ammunition Factory Khadki Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weapo ...

, which developed and manufactured the anti-submarine rockets used in sinking the submarine PNS Ghazi during the

References

{{Authority control Military of India Manufacturing companies based in Kolkata Firearm manufacturers of India Government-owned companies of India Military research installations of India Defence companies of India Automotive companies of India Chemical companies of India Electronics companies of India Steel companies of India Textile companies of India Defence agencies of India Ministry of Defence (India)