Modernization measures for Armed Forces
Contracts worth about Rs.138,727.16 crore have been signed with foreign vendors for capital procurements of defence equipment for Armed Forces during 2016-19, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha on 24 June 2019.
The Government is taking measures for modernization of the Armed Forces, through procurement of new equipment and upgrading of existing equipment and systems, he said.
The modernization projects are being progressed as per the approved Capital Acquisition Plans and in terms of the extant Defence Procurement Procedure.
Since the launch of ‘Make in India’ in September 2014, several measures have been taken by the Government to promote indigenous design, development and manufacture of defence & aerospace equipment in the country under ‘Make in India’ by harnessing the capabilities of the public and private sector.
Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) has been revised in 2016 wherein specific provisions have been introduced for stimulating growth of the domestic defence industry.
The Government has decided to establish two defence industrial corridors to serve as an engine of economic development and growth of defence industrial base in the country. These are spanning across Chennai, Hosur, Coimbatore, Salem and Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu and spanning across Aligarh, Agra, Jhansi, Kanpur and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh (UP), said Singh in an update.
The Government has notified a Policy for indigenisation of components and spares used in Defence Platforms. The objective of the policy is to create an industry ecosystem which is able to indigenize the imported components (including alloys & special materials) and sub-assemblies for defence equipment and platform manufactured in India.
Defence Investor Cell has been created in the Ministry to provide all necessary information including addressing queries related to investment opportunities, procedures and regulatory requirements for investment in the sector. fiinews.com
