Innovate to make India a ‘leader’ from an ‘imitator’ in futuristic technologies

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh has called upon industry leaders to come up with innovative solutions to help India become a ‘leader’ from an ‘imitator’ in futuristic technologies and stay prepared to deal with challenges emanating from the current global security scenario. He was addressing the annual session of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi on May 25, 2023. The theme of the session was ‘Future Frontiers: Competitiveness, Technology, Sustainability and Internationalisation’.

The Raksha Mantri asserted that, in today’s era, security equations are changing at an unprecedented pace and countries are focusing more than ever on technological advancements in the fields of artificial intelligence, quantum computing & genetics etc. He termed it as both - a challenge of not lagging behind in the race of technology as well as an opportunity of making a mark, with the aim to help the nation leapfrog on the path of progress.

Shri Rajnath Singh described Research & Development (R&D) in cutting-edge technology as the only way to achieve this goal, stating that it opens new dimensions crucial for the development and security of any nation in today’s times. “We need to set new goals and achieve them through innovative methods to keep ourselves prepared to deal with any challenges arising out of the ever-evolving global situation. R&D has the ability to convert things, which are viewed as resources, into resources. Technology improves the utilisation of the available resources. It acts as a force multiplier,” he said.

The Raksha Mantri stressed on the need for R&D to achieve excellence in various fields, including defence, health, education, agriculture, commerce & communication, stating that it can give the country an edge over the others. “To keep ourselves strong, we need to maintain our edge in these sectors. It will be possible only if we become technology leaders,” he said.

Shri Rajnath Singh described the youth as the most crucial aspect of the demographic dividend, stating that the continuous growth of start-ups in the country is a result of the potential, energy and enthusiasm of the young Indian minds. “Today, there are about one lakh start-ups in the country; of which more than 100 are unicorns. Without many resources, our start-ups are competing with bigger entities with their passion. Our industries need to work with the same passion to compete with global giants,” he said.

Mr Baba Kalyani, Chairman, CII National Committee on Defence & Chairman, Bharat Forge Limited in his welcome remarks highlighted 9 extraordinary measures by the Government of India ‘Navastras’ that have redefined the Indian Defence Industrial Landscape. These included – (i) Make in India which has now transformed itself into Made in India for the rest of the world, (ii) the Consultative and collaborative approach of the Government with the private sector, (iii) Promulgation of Defence Procurement Policies 2016 followed by Defence Acquisition Procedure in 2020, (iv) Launch of the IDEXX challenges to foster innovation and entrepreneurship, (v) Instituting the Export Promotion Cell to promote Made in India Products and Platforms to the world market, (vi) Target driven approach of 25 billion dollars per annum defence production and 5 billion dollar defence export, (vii) reforms in DRDO for collaboration with industry towards laying the foundation of a vibrant defence and aerospace production system, (viii) seamless interaction between users -Army, Navy and Airforce – the DRDO & the Indian industry through design bureaus across the three services, (ix) structural and rapid action-oriented measures undertaken under 'AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan'.   

Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Dr Samir V Kamat, other senior officials of the Ministry of Defence and industry captains were among those present on the occasion.