Achieving impressive growth in defence products in recent years, private entities and public enterprises in the country’s defence production sector have attained a combined production of goods worth Rs 1.5 lakh crore, Sushil Satpute, Deputy Director General, Department of Defence Production, New Delhi, said.
Addressing a meeting of the Rajasthan Industries officials and sectoral delegates here on Friday, Satpute said, “This facilitated the exports of the goods worth Rs 23,600 crore to friendly countries in the last one year.”
He said, “22.5 per cent of these goods go to the private sector”.
The Dy DG said that the government’s thrust for greater participation of the private sector also encouraged more and more companies to show interest in working. “This was evident from the fact that the number of defence production licences has gone up from 246 to 742,” he added.
The meeting was part of a still-in-progress bid to promote indigenisation in the manufacturing of defence products by the Government of India at the Udhyog Bhawan here, under the chairmanship of Alok Gupta, Principal Secretary, Rajasthan Industries and Commerce.
Officials from RIICO also participated in the meeting and outlined details about land availability in Rajasthan for defence development and investments. They further highlighted Rajasthan’s strategic location for the establishment of defence manufacturing units, an official spokesman said, adding the state government has also expressed its willingness to formulate its Defence Aerospace Policy.
The state authorities also highlighted the advantages offered in the Rajasthan Investment Promotion Scheme (RIPS 2024), he said.
Entrepreneurs raised concerns about the difficulties in acquiring licences and approvals, and requested the Ministry of Defence Production to organise an exhibition in Rajasthan that would showcase the necessary defence equipment.
The entrepreneurs were assured that the necessary equipment for testing of defence products would be made available and would draw a significant investment in the state, the spokesman said.
The meeting was attended by Rohit Gupta, Commissioner of Industries, Miss Shivangi Swarnkar, Managing Director of RIICO, Suresh Ola, Commissioner of Bureau of Investment Promotion (BIP), along with officials from 20 industrial units that are currently associated with defence manufacturing in Rajasthan.