'Indian defence & aerospace sector will expand to Rs 5 lakh crore by 2047': Rajnath Singh

Noting the accomplishments of India's growing defence sector, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday stated that the Indian defence and aerospace sector is likely to expand its size to Rs 5 lakh crore by 2047 with the due reforms taken by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government.

While asserting the current measures of the government for upheaving the involvement of the private sector in defence manufacturing, Singh highlighted that the private sector plays a pivotal role in achieving the goal of expansion of the Indian defence sector.

Addressing the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry's (FICCI) Annual Convention, Defence Minister Singh said, "At present, India's defence and aerospace manufacturing market is worth (Rs) 85,000 crore. I believe it will increase to one lakh crore in 2022. When we talk about India Beyond 75, I see the defence and aerospace manufacturing market in India to be Rs 5 lakh crore by 2047."

Govt committed to expand 'Atmanirbhar Raksha Utpadan'

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh went on to say that the Union government wants to promote domestic companies under its ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative and the Centre is working to expand the Positive Indigenization List of 209 items to 1,000 items.

"In this decade, we will increase the items under the Positive list for Indigenization from 209 to over 1,000. The government now looks at the private industry as their partners and in fulfilling the objective of obtaining Atmanirbhar Raksha Utpadan," the Defence Minister said.

Singh reinstated the Central government's full support to defence industry manufacturers and highlighted that the government wants to act like a facilitator. He affirmed the Defence Ministry's commitment to expanding the budget outlay for procurement of army equipment from domestic suppliers to further promote ‘Atmanirbhar Raksha Utpadan.'

"Government is committed to increasing the budget outlay for defence procurement from Indian industries," Singh said.

Corporatisation of OFB biggest reform in the defence production'

Stressing on enhancing the manufacturing of defence equipment and platforms within India, Singh said that the ministry will be inviting global companies to invest in India's defence and aerospace. As per Singh, the corporisation of OFB (Ordnance Factory Board) is the biggest reform in defence production post Independence. 

The Indian Defence Minister praised the government's efforts to expand private sector participation and join hands with the worldwide corporations, and said, "The Indian defence industry has realised that the opportune time has come for its take-off to higher trajectories. Corporatisation of OFB is probably the biggest reform in the defence production sector since independence."

Rajnath Singh made these comments while addressing the FICCI's Annual Convention and 94th annual general meeting on the theme 'India Beyond 75.'  FICCI president Uday Shankar, who was among the attendees of the event, stated that Indian defence exports had surged by 325% in the last five years, making India a major worldwide provider of defence equipment.

"India is now not just importing from, but also co-developing and co-producing cutting-edge technologies with its major defence allies such as Israel, Russia, South Korea, and the United States," he said.

(With inputs from ANI, Image: PTI/@rajnathsingh/Twitter)