In an effort to get a bigger role for Indian industry in defence production, the DRDO has come up with a slew of policies that include zero fee for transfer of technology (ToT), free access to over 450 patents, open test facilities, upfront funding up to ₹10 crore, says its Chairman, G Satish Reddy.
To meet the target of reaching 70 per cent indigenisation from the present 45 per cent, there is a need to ensure ease of collaboration and private sector participation in defence production, he said at a DRDO-Industry meet in Hyderabad today.
The meet, attended by over 250 industries and officials, was an exercise to offer technologies and also listen to the issues that were limiting partnerships and private sector investments in the defence sector.
Satish Reddy said, the Indian industry has built capabilities to manufacture components to complete systems and from critical sub-systems to missiles. He cited the example of Akash missile, wherein the Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) is manufacturing 60 numbers per month. “Recently, the Chairman & Managing Director of BDL told me that they have capacity to produce 120 numbers per month too. This shows the confidence and maturity”, says Satish Reddy, who is also Secretary, Defence Research & Development.
The industry representatives highlighted the procedure delays, financial constraints in bidding, lack of assured orders, long gestation in project execution as some of the issues that needed to be ironed out to facilitate greater collaborations and participation.
At present, there are 1,800, big, small and medium enterprises that are associated with the DRDO in its wide range of projects from smart bombs to Agni missile, radars to battle tanks, field guns to on board propulsion systems.
In a video message, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said an ambitious target of reaching $26 billion by 2025 in defence production with an investment of $10 billion and creation of 20 lakh jobs has been set. He expressed confidence of achieving it. Similarly, in Artificial Intelligence, big plans of producing atleast 25 specific products by 2024 is the road map laid out for the DRDO, he said.
