India to become a strategic economy with its domestic defence industry: Rajnath Singh

Tezpur, Assam: The Indian government, as per the Defence Minister, is actively encouraging a stronger domestic defence industry ecosystem with the aim of establishing India as a strategic economic powerhouse. Speaking at the 21st convocation ceremony of Tezpur University on December 31, 2023, Singh spoke about the Ministry's efforts to achieve self-reliance in the defence sector.

Highlighting the strides taken by the Ministry of Defence towards achieving AtmaNirbharta (self-reliance) in defence, Rajnath Singh underlined the decision to curtail arms imports. "We issued five positive indigenization lists, under which 509 such defence equipment have been identified, whose manufacturing will now be done indigenously. In addition, we have also issued 4 positive indigenization lists of Defence Public Sector Undertakings, in which 4,666 items have been identified which will now be manufactured in our country," Singh said.

In line with the government's focus on domestic defence manufacturing, Singh revealed that the production had surpassed the figure of Rs One Lakh Crore for the first time. He reiterated the surge India's defence exports had recently witnessed from Rs 1,521 crore in 2016-17 to Rs 15,920 crore in 2022-23.

Furthermore, Singh underlined the proactive approach of the present government in replacing a crisis of credibility with a culture of confidence. "India is no more tolerant of the 'let-it-be' approach. Today, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the new India believes in the 'let’s-do-it' approach," he affirmed.

Touching upon the issue of women empowerment, Singh highlighted the government's efforts to ensure equitable representation of women across all sectors, including the military. "Today, women are walking shoulder to shoulder with men in every field in the country. From fighter planes to Chandrayan, there is no field in which the presence of women is not seen," asserted the Raksha Mantri.

Underlining the role of youth in shaping Viksit Bharat (Developed India), Singh stated that India's vision as an economic and military superpower relies on the capabilities of its youth. "To empower the youth and enhance their capabilities, our government has promoted start-up culture and innovation ecosystem," he added.

Regarding the initiation of a start-up culture within the Defence Industrial Sector, Singh praised the Innovation for Defence Excellence (iDEX) for effectively promoting innovative ideas since its inception. "Because of the various efforts by the Government to promote entrepreneurship among youth, today there are over one lakh start-ups in the country," Singh added.