NEW DELHI — India’s much-awaited purchase of 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) for the Indian air force from French firm Dassault Aviation will be further delayed as negotiations to calculate the life-cycle cost haven’t been settled and there is no money for any new buys, Defense Minister A. K. Antony says. “The MMRCA will materialize, [but] it will not be in this financial year [ending March 31],” Antony says. “The negotiations on life-cycle costs are continuing. I hope we will be able to close it [during the] next financial year.”

NEW DELHI — India’s state-run Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Textron Systems Corporation to develop an unattended ground sensor (UGS) system for Indian security agencies.

HELO SCANDAL: A day after barring AgustaWestland and parent company Finmeccanica from participating in the country’s biennial military exhibition, India says no decision has been made whether to to blacklist the firms from future business for breaching a pre-contract integrity pact concerning the now-canceled purchase of 12 VIP transport helicopters for the Indian air force. The contract for 12 AW101s, signed with AgustaWestland International Ltd. on Feb 8, 2010, was terminated by the government on Jan. 1.