Make in India for Defence

A Comprehensive Overview

Introduction

The “Make in India” initiative, launched by the Government of India in 2014, aims to transform India into a global manufacturing hub. A critical component of this initiative is the defence sector, which seeks to achieve self-reliance in defence production, reduce dependence on imports, and enhance indigenous capabilities. This document provides an in-depth overview of the “Make in India” initiative for defence, highlighting key policies, achievements, challenges, and future prospects.

Key Objectives

  1. *Self-Reliance*: Reduce dependency on defence imports by fostering indigenous production.
  2. *Capability Development*: Enhance the manufacturing capabilities of Indian defence industries.
  3. *Export Promotion*: Increase the export potential of Indian defence products.
  4. *Employment Generation*: Create job opportunities through the expansion of the defence manufacturing sector.
  5. *Technological Advancement*: Promote research and development to develop cutting-edge defence technologies.

Major Policies and Initiatives

  1. *Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP)*: Revised to streamline procurement processes and encourage domestic manufacturing.
  2. *Strategic Partnership Model (SPM)*: Allows Indian companies to collaborate with global defence manufacturers to build defence platforms in India.
  3. *Defence Industrial Corridors*: Establishment of defence industrial corridors in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh to create clusters of defence manufacturing.
  4. *Indigenization Lists*: Ministry of Defence publishes positive indigenization lists, which restrict import of certain defence items to boost domestic production.
  5. *Innovation for Defence Excellence (iDEX)*: A platform to promote innovation and technology development in the defence and aerospace sectors by supporting startups and MSMEs.
  6. *Offset Policy*: Requires foreign vendors to invest a portion of their contract value in the Indian defence sector.

Key Achievements

  1. *Indigenous Defence Products*: Development and production of various defence products, such as:

   – *HAL Tejas*: A light combat aircraft.

   – *INS Vikrant*: India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier.

   – *Arjun Main Battle Tank*: Advanced battle tank.

   – *BrahMos Missile*: Supersonic cruise missile developed in collaboration with Russia.

Scroll to Top