Big scoop on Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh's 'important announcement' accessed: What we know

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to make an important announcement, informed the Defence Ministry in a tweet on Sunday. As speculation began after Defence Ministry's tweet, sources have told Republic TV that Raksha Mantri will make an announcement regarding PM Modi's initiative to make India Aatmanirbhar in the defence sector. The Central government has already launched a number of schemes under the banner of Aatmanirbhar Bharat, which aims to make India self-sufficient and promotes local products. 

As per sources, Raksha Mantri is likely to announce the list of 100 indigenous defence items that will not be imported from now on. This will boost Indian defence companies.

Launched during the lockdown due to Coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urged the citizens to go 'Vocal for Local' and highlighted the importance of being Aatmanirbhar (self-sufficient) at a time when the world is under lockdown and COVID restrictions have become a challenge to Globalisation. 

Raksha Mantri's announcement

The Ministry of Defence has prepared a list of 101 items for which there would be an embargo on the import beyond the timeline indicated against them. This decision will offer a great opportunity to the Indian defence industry to manufacture the items in the negative list by using their own design and development capabilities or adopting the technologies designed & developed by DRDO to meet the requirements of the Armed Forces.

MoD has bifurcated the capital procurement budget for 2020-21 between domestic and foreign capital procurement routes. A separate budget head has been created with an outlay of nearly Rs 52,000 crore for domestic capital procurement in the current financial year. More such equipment for import embargo would be identified progressively by the DMA in consultation with all stakeholders. A due note of this will also be made in the DAP to ensure that no item in the negative list is processed for import in the future. All necessary steps would be taken to ensure that timelines for production of equipment as per the Negative Import List are met, which will include a co-ordinated mechanism for hand holding of the industry by the Defence Services. The embargo on imports is planned to be progressively implemented between 2020 to 2024. Our aim is to apprise the Indian defence industry about the anticipated requirements of the Armed Forces so that they are better prepared to realise the goal of indigenisation.

READ | Home Min Amit Shah pins Aatmanirbhar Bharat as a stepping stone for $5 trillion economy

The announcement by Raksha Mantri comes right after India received the first 5 Rafale aircraft from France, which is seen as a mega boost to Indian Air Force's firepower. The five Rafale jets arrived at Indian Airforce's Ambala airbase on July 29. The announcement is also seen to be crucial as it is the first announcement by the Defence Minister after India locked horns with China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and has been facing ceasefire violations by Pakistan almost on a daily basis in the past few months. 

READ | Union Min Pradhan reviews pipeline projects worth 8000 cr, pitches for Aatmanirbhar Bharat

If sources are to be believed, the Defence Minister's announcement will be a boost to the defence sector of the country, and will be a flagship of PM Modi's Aatmanirbhar project. The Aatmanirbhar project of PM Modi has been used in each sector - namely finance, technology, education, etc. To further strengthened his will to make the country self-sufficient, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on July 4 launched the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat App Innovation Challenge' to help start-up and tech. Thus all eyes are now set at Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to how the Defence sector accommodates in the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Mission. 

READ | Aatmanirbhar Bharat does not close doors for international economic activity: Piyush Goyal

READ | PM Modi to inaugurate Chennai-Port Blair submarine cable; big boost to Andaman & Nicobar