India’s defence exports treble

Thanks to the Make-in-India initiative, the country has achieved a massive feat in the defence sector. Today, India's defence exports are well above ₹14,000 crore in 2021-22.

New Delhi, Dec 23: Modi government's flagship initiative Make-in-India is doing wonders. It is paying huge dividends in the defence sector as the country is fast emerging as an arms exporter. India has long been a net importer of defence products and it was never imagined that it could become an exporter one day. However, the incumbent government under Prime Minister Modi has done it. Today, India's defence exports are well above ₹14,000 crore in 2021-22.

Elaborating on Make-in-India in the defence sector, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh admitted that the new numbers are an outcome of the government's policies to boost the export of military hardware. Most of the defence products are being exported to friendly foreign countries. Thus, it is not just an arms trade but also a way to strengthen bilateral ties.

India still Imports defence products worth billions

Although it is an encouraging development that India is emerging as a defence manufacturer and the exports have gone up, it is still a net importer. In fact, foreign procurement in defence has gone up significantly. Whereas it stands at Rs 50,061 crore in 2021-2022, it was Rs 37,030 crore in 2017-2018. This shows India has still to cover a lot in defence productions.

Nevertheless, Rajnath Singh has said that there has been good progress in the innovation ecosystem for defence as well. The major initiative to bring a turnaround change in the way Indian defence sector operates, the ministry has brought in 'Innovations for Defence Excellence' or (iDEX).

iDEX, one idea could change the perception

The idea of iDEX scheme has been a transforming one. Although it was launched in April 2018, in a very short span of time it has been able to foster innovation and technology development in defence and aerospace. The fundamental goal of the scheme is to engage industries including medium, small, and micro enterprises (MSMEs).

Academia and MSMEs with several startups, individual innovators, research and development institutes, etc. have been fuelling the entire success story. According to the ministry sources, under iDEX, 233 problems have been opened, 310 start-ups engaged, 140 contracts signed all these years to promote defence manufacturing.

Not just the defence exports, India is also focusing on the indigenization of defence platforms and products in a big way. The slogan given by the Prime Minister is 'Aatmnirbhar Bharat' which simply means making India self-reliant. Today, thanks to a positive indigenisation mission, a list of over 3,700 items has been issued.