New Delhi, Nov 2 (Agency) Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday called upon Indian youth to indigenously develop high-end technologies, which the country imports, to realise the government’s vision of Viksit Bharat. Addressing the 65th Foundation Day celebrations at IIT, Kanpur, the Defence Minister described ‘technology’ as the biggest factor behind the rapid changes taking place in every field today, with countries competing to master niche tech, such as Artificial Intelligence, to establish an edge in the current geopolitical scenario.He further pointed out that based on technological developments, there are three groups of countries – the first are at the pinnacle in advanced tech; the second have reached a stagnant state and third are at a stage of technological take-off, an official statement said. Placing India in the third group, Rajnath stated that the nation is today surging towards the top position in technological advancements. He stressed on the need to get a hold on high-end technology, urging the young ignited minds to realise their potential and contribute to the country’s progress. He termed institutions like IIT Kanpur as academic engines, which can provide a dynamism to India in the present competitive environment, and place it among the first set of countries.
Highlighting the increasing role of technology in the defence ecosystem across the globe amidst ongoing conflicts, the Defence Minister said that the use of drones, laser warfare, cyber warfare, precision guided missiles and hypersonic missiles has transformed warfare into a technology-oriented one. “The biggest hurdle in achieving ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in defence is that we are compelled to import some high-end technologies necessary for our items. There is a need to focus on defence application of modern cutting-edge technologies in view of the changing nature of warfare,” he added. He assured the Government’s full support in this endeavour and reiterated the commitment to take all stakeholders, including the private sector and academia, together to make India self-reliant in defence. “India has dreamed of becoming a developed nation by 2047 on the strength of our youth. We must put in all our power to realise that dream. There is a proverb, ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together’. We need to walk together to achieve our target,” he said.Enumerating the steps taken by the Government to promote self-reliance and innovation in defence, Rajnath spoke about the Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) initiative which provides a grant of Rs 1.5 crore to innovators and start-ups. He added that Acing Development of Innovative Technologies with iDEX (ADITI) scheme was launched to promote innovations in critical and strategic defence technologies, wherein start-ups are eligible to receive grant-in-aid of up to Rs 25 crore for their research, development, and innovation endeavours in defence technology.
He added that the Government’s efforts to achieve self-reliance are yielding desired results as the defence exports, which were around just Rs 600 crore ten years ago, crossed a record number of Rs 21,000 crore in Financial Year 2023-24. He exuded confidence that the progress will continue and defence exports will reach Rs 50,000 crore by 2029-30. Several MoUs were also signed to strengthen partnerships, including IIT Kanpur’s collaborations with BEML and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to drive advancements in military logistics and defence innovation, and a partnership with Kanpur University to strengthen incubation efforts. Secretary of DDR&D and DRDO Chairman Samir V Kamat presented sanction letters for six transformative DRDO projects, while SIDBI’s Matching Offer for iDEX-funded start-ups further boosted essential funding support.