Enhancing India’s defence capabilities has been one of the government’s foremost priorities. In line with that, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin on June 5 and German Federal Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius on June 6.
In a statement, the Ministry informed that during the meetings a range of bilateral defence cooperation issues will be discussed and that there will be a focus on industrial cooperation.
This will be the US Secretary of Defence’s second visit to India, the previous one being in March 2021. Secretary Austin will arrive on June 4 from Singapore on a two-day visit.
The German Federal Minister of Defence will be on a four-day visit to India beginning June 5. The Minister is likely to meet a few defence start-ups during an event organised by Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) in New Delhi. Further, on June 7, he will travel to Mumbai, where he is likely to visit Headquarters, Western Naval Command, and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited.
Growing startups in India’s defence sector
India's defence startup industry has been experiencing significant growth in recent years. The government has been actively promoting startups and innovation in the defence sector as part of its “Make in India” initiative.
India has made progress in defence production along with promoting greater participation from private players in the sector. Building indigenous defence production capabilities provides a country with greater strategic autonomy.
Recently, India’s defence production crossed the Rs. 1 lakh crore mark. The government is consistently taking a series of steps in this direction. The latest one is the approval of the 4th Positive Indigenization List (PIL) of 928 strategically important Line Replacement Units (LRUs)/Sub-systems/Spares and Components, including high-end materials and spares, with an import substitution value of Rs 715 crore.
