[6] It is a Kalyani-Paramount partnership developed variant of the Mbombe 4 built by South Africa's Paramount Group.

After conducting extensive trials in Ladakh, the Indian Army placed orders for these vehicles under an emergency procurement amidst China-India Border Standoff in a contract worth ₹177.95 crore (equivalent to ₹200 crore or US$23 million in 2023) in 2021.

[7] The Kalyani M4 is designed predominantly as an extraction and occupant protection vehicle.

It has a 43-degree approach and 44-degrees departure angle with a water wading depth of 900 mm to operate it in tough terrain or fording rivers [8] The Kalyani M4 uses a turbocharged 6-pot diesel motor which is rated to deliver 465hp and a 1627 Nm of torque.

It also features a low-range gearbox to work with the 4×4 system to scale difficult steep inclines.