Govt making efforts to raise defence output to $22 billion

Gandhinagar: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said the central government is making efforts to achieve a turnover of $22 billion by 2025 in defence production.

Speaking at the 'Invest in Defence' event as part of the ongoing Defence Expo 2022 in Gujarat capital Gandhinagar, Singh also appealed to investors to approach him or defence ministry officials without any hesitation to resolve issues. He appealed to private players to come forward and invest in the Indian defence industry, saying it is at an important juncture. Not just large corporates, even start-ups and MSMEs (micro small and medium enterprises) are now associated with the defence sector. This is the golden period for the defence sector, he said. "The Indian defence industry is the sunrise sector of the future," the minister said. "The government is making efforts to take domestic defence production from the current $12 billion to $22 billion by 2025. We may even surpass this target of $22 billion. There is no dearth of opportunities in the defence sector. India is marching ahead in fulfilling the demands of the world in this sector," he said.

The Centre has taken several steps and implemented many reforms to boost local production in the defence sector, Singh said. "In the past, doors of the Defence Ministry used to remain shut for private players. The defence ministers and officials of the ministry used to avoid meeting investors thinking that someone would point a finger at them. But, we are not worried about that. Our doors are always open for you," he said.

The defence and economic power of a country complement each other and a nation will progress more if it has secured it well from threats, he said addressing the gathering. Singh said even after so many years of independence, "India could not achieve freedom from the belief that we will have to compromise on socio-economic front if we focus more on increasing defence capabilities". "For a long time, there was a belief that defence and development are two opposite poles, which means that if we focus on socio-economic development, we will have to compromise on our defence capabilities. But now, I am glad the country has come out of that notion during the last few years," he said.

There is no dearth of opportunities in the defence sector. India is marching ahead in fulfilling the demands of the world in this sector. In the past, doors of the Defence Ministry used to remain shut for private players. The defence ministers and officials of the ministry used to avoid meeting investors thinking that someone would point a finger at them. But, we are not worried about that. Our doors are always open for you

- Rajnath Singh, Defence Minister