LUCKNOW, June 25 -- The Uttar Pradesh government has approved a large-scale arms procurement plan worth Rs 10.69 crore for the Uttar Pradesh Special Security Force (UPSSF), a specialised unit modelled on the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), to enhance its firepower with submachine guns and semi-automatic pistols. The UPSSF will receive 1,113 submachine guns and 465 semi-automatic pistols as part of the upgrade. The government issued the approval through an official order dated June 19, 2025, signed by special secretary Annavi Dinesh Kumar. The submachine guns will cost over Rs 8.69 crore, while the pistols are estimated at Rs 2.01 crore. The amount will be released under the 2025-26 financial year from the "Machinery and Equipment" head of the UPSSF budget. The weapons are to be distributed among three battalions of the force, which is deployed to guard key locations such as courts, VIP government buildings, metro stations, airports, and banks. In a parallel move, the state government has sanctioned Rs 78 lakh for the Cobra commando unit tasked with high-level VIP security. The budget will be used to procure 100 CZ Scorpion submachine guns, each priced at Rs 78,000. These commandos are deployed for the security of the governor, the chief minister, former chief ministers, and other senior state dignitaries. The procurement is aimed at enhancing the close protection capability of the unit. The approval was issued through a government order dated June 20, 2025, and was electronically signed by Special Secretary Annavi Dinesh Kumar. Notably, the UPSSF was constituted on December 31, 2019, in response to a spate of violent incidents within court premises across the state. It became operational in September 2022 with its first deployment of 30 personnel at Lok Bhawan in Lucknow....