DefExpo witnesses 451 MoUs, Envisages investment of Rs 1.5 lakh cr

The five day Def Expo-2022 concluded on Saturday in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. According to defence minister Rajnath Singh the 12th edition of the event has written a new chapter on the growth & prowess of the Indian defence sector. He termed it as the beginning of a new era of self-reliance, in which a strong and prosperous ‘New India’ is fully ready to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with major world powers.

During the event, Four hundred and fifty-one (451) Memoranda of Understanding, Transfer of Technology agreements and product launches took place during the Bandhan ceremony on October 20, 2022. Of the 451, there were 345 MoUs, 42 Major Announcements, 46 Product Launches and 18 ToTs. The contribution of Gujarat was 28 MoUs and one Product Launch. It envisages investment worth Rs 1.5 lakh crore. Indian Air Force and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited concluded a contract for 70 HTT-40 indigenous trainer aircraft worth Rs 6,800 crore.

#DefExpo2022 :many pvt companies displayed their heavy defence products. pic.twitter.com/PMoAcZ5Vb8

— newsinc24 (@newsinc24) October 23, 2022

India’s private sector defence industry finally has the Government support it lacked for decades. Defence Public Sector Units (DPSU) and the Indian industry put on a strong show in Gandhinagar, with the latter presenting a wide range of defence systems and platforms, showcasing the dramatic strides made in the last few years.The Government has reserved 68% of the defence capital acquisition for domestic procurement for the year 2022-23 to increase the participation of domestic industry in the defence sector. This would be worth approximately Rs 85,000 crore, and 25% of this,Rs 21,250 crore has been reserved for domestic private industry.

An important new weapons system unveiled at the show was Kalyani Group’s Mounting Artillery Gun System 8X8 High Mobility Vehicle. Bharat Forge and Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL)displayed their defence products in a large scale. An emerging player in the Indian private sector defence industry, Adani Defence & Aerospace projected investments to the tune of Rs 5,000 crore in priority areas of information processing, AI/ML, Unmanned systems etc.At DefExpo, HAL’s TEJAS Division inked MoUs with Lakshmi Machine Works (LMW) and VEM Technologies and Larsen & Toubro to manufacture 40 sets of air intake assemblies. French fighter aircraft Rafale's model was also displyaed.

#DefenceExpo2022, French company Dassault displayed Rafale aircraft. pic.twitter.com/0y3k9ltfF0

— newsinc24 (@newsinc24) October 23, 2022

In a first, National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets of Bihar & Jharkhand Directorate participated as exhibitors and displayed three advanced technology prototypes, showcasing the might of the largest uniformed youth organisation in the world.More than 1300 companies took part in the biggest ever def expo.  DefExpo 2022 has set the tone for the increased participation of the Indian private sector industry in establishing a defence manufacturing ecosystem at home.