Amid growing incidents of gun violence in recent years, India's state-owned defence company has launched the country's first long-range swing revolver 'Prabal' for civilians and arms dealers.
Manufactured by the state-owned enterprise Advanced Weapons and Equipment India (AWEIL) based in Kanpur, the Prabal revolver boasts of a firing range of up to 50 metres, which the company claims is "twice the range of other revolvers."
The single and double-action 'Prabal' revolver weighs 675 grams (excluding cartridges). It has a chrome-platted barrel length of 76 mm and an overall length of 187.7 mm.
AWEIL's officiating director Rajiv Sharma said the .32-bore revolver is capable of accurately hitting targets up to 50 metres away. "This range is more than double that of other revolvers currently in production, establishing Prabal as a frontrunner in the field of long-range handguns," he added.
"The feature that sets Prabal apart from its counterparts is the incorporation of a side swing out cylinder. This innovative design element eliminates the need to fold the firearm for cartridge insertion, simplifying the reloading process and enhancing user convenience," he said.
What does India's gun law say and who can own firearms?
The gun control laws in India are among the most stringent legislations in the world. According to the Arms Act of 1959, the possession, sale, manufacture and export of firearms without a valid license is outlawed and is punishable with a fine and jail term.
Under the Arms Act, firearms are classified into two categories — Prohibited Bore (PB) and Non-Prohibited Bore (NPB) firearms. PB weapons comprise of fully and semi-automatic firearms and other specified types of firearms that are issued only by the Centre for certain groups of people, while NPB weapons are firearms issued by the government for civilians.
Only, defence officers, high-ranking government officials and select shooters can hold PB weapons while civilians are only granted a licence to hold NPB weapons. According to the Arms Act, a maximum of two firearms can be issued per license.
In order to hold a firearm in India, the individual applying for a license must be a citizen of this country and must be a minimum of 21 years of age. Guns can only be utilized for three purposes — sports, crop protection and self-defence.
For a self-defence license, an individual must provide proof of a threat to life. However, this can also be cited with respect to protection from wild animals in certain cases. The individual must also detail a record of their criminal behaviour (if any) as the law prohibits gun ownership for civilians sentenced to imprisonment on charges of violence for five years.
Upon submitting the application, police will take two months to perform background checks, assess the individual’s mental health and criminal history. They will also evaluate any threats claimed and the individual's competence to handle firearms.
Amid a spate of gun-firing incidents
The revolver's launch comes at a time when India continues to witness a surge in civilian-triggered gun violence and deaths.
From the killing of an Imam during the recent communal clashes in Haryana's Nuh and Gurugram to the gunning down of a journalist in Bihar's Aria district last week, gun violence continues to be a growing problem in India.
On August 17, two people were killed and six others were injured when a person who works as a bank security guard opened fire on them from his double-barrel gun after an altercation over pet dogs in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city.
In the past week, India's top court had expressed concern over multiple incidents of gun violence across courts in Delhi and called the situation "appalling."
However, gun violence is not restricted to civilians as well.
An RPF constable gunned down his senior officer and three Muslim passengers on a Jaipur-bound train near Maharashtra's Palghar station on July 31. While officials claim the motive behind the crime is not clear, the constable has a past history of harassing minority community members.
(With additional inputs from PTI)