Over Three Lakh Crore Investment Proposals From UP Investors Summit Operationalised: CM Yogi Adityanath

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief Minister (CM) of Uttar Pradesh (UP) Yogi Adityanath held consultations to enhance investment in the UP Defence Industrial Corridor (UPDIC) at the CM’s residence in Lucknow on Friday (12 November).

The Union Minister listened to the views of representatives of private defence industries present at the meeting and was briefed on the progress of investments in UPDIC.

Addressing the gathering, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that from amongst the investment proposals received in the UP Investors’ Summit, proposals worth more than Rs three lakh crore has been operationalised, and the production has started in most of them.

He said that the participation of over 1,000 companies from more than 70 countries in the Defence Expo 2020 in Uttar Pradesh was significant for UPDIC.

The Defence Minister announced that the Government is considering a centrally sponsored scheme to incentivise investments in Defence Industrial Corridors and develop the defence manufacturing ecosystem.

“Free Transfer of Technology by DRDO and increase in FDI limit up for access to cutting edge technologies of the world are some of the steps taken by us to promote use of indigenous technology in the private sector,” he said.

He said that the Government has concluded contracts with global giants, which will enhance operational capabilities and capacity and most of the defence platforms will be manufactured in India through ties ups with Indian companies.

He added that the 'MAKE' category has been reformed and launched Innovation for Defense Excellence (iDEX) to encourage MSMEs and startups. He mentioned that Rs 1,000 crore have been allocated for iDEX related purchases, which will be increased further in the future. Rs 500 crore have also been allocated separately to support startups for the next five years, he said.

Rajnath Singh said, India’s defence exports have grown by 334 per cent in the last five years and today the country is exporting to 75 countries. He urged the anchor defence industries to identify more areas of research, development and manufacturing, adding that big domestic business houses and foreign Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) subsidiaries have not only been invited to tap into the potential of UPDIC but also to listen to their views.

Rajnath Singh applauded the UP Chief Minister for acting with urgency to create a conducive business environment in the state in the last four years. Speaking on the reforms initiated by the state government he said, “the new policy reforms, coupled with the ever-increasing ranking in 'ease of doing business', have paved the way of industrial development in the state and taken 'Uttar Pradesh' on the path of 'Uttam Pradesh'”.

He said that the state government has worked on land acquisition on all nodes of UPDIC and this will continue at a fast pace.

With the efforts of the union government, India has made considerable progress on domestic manufacturing in the defence sector. From 2014 till date over 350 licences were issued to private industries compared to 200 licences issued between 2000 and 2014.

For 2021-22, the Government has earmarked around 64 per cent of its modernisation funds under the capital acquisition budget for procurement from domestic companies.