Defence Ministry Approves Proposals Worth $17.4 Billion for Future-ready Combat Vehicles, Radars and More

Boost local industries and reduce dependency on foreign suppliers

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), under the chairmanship of Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh on September 03, 2024, approved 10 capital acquisition proposals worth Rs 1.45 lakh crore (approximately USD 17.4 billion) in a major step towards enhancing India's defence capabilities.

The acquisitions include advanced weaponry, surveillance systems, and other critical technologies, which will enhance the operational capabilities of the Indian armed forces.

A significant portion of these acquisitions focus on promoting indigenous defense manufacturing under the ‘Make in India’ initiative. This could boost local industries and reduce dependency on foreign suppliers.

Of the total cost of all 10 approved proposals, 99% is from indigenous sources under Buy (Indian) and Buy (lndian-Indigenously Designed Developed and Manufactured) categories.

For modernisation of the tank fleet of the Indian Army, the proposal for procurement of Future Ready Combat Vehicles (FRCVs) has been cleared. The FRCV will be a futuristic Main Battle Tank with superior mobility, all terrain ability, multilayered protections, precision & lethal fires over and real-time situational awareness.

The Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) was also accorded for procurement of Air Defence Fire Control Radars, which will detect & track aerial target and provide firing solution. The proposal has also been approved for Forward Repair Team (Tracked) which has suitable cross country mobility for carrying out in-situ repair during mechanised operations. This equipment is designed & developed by Armoured Vehicles Nigam Limited, and is authorised for both mechanised Infantry Battalion and Armoured Regiment.

Three AoNs have been accorded to enhance the capabilities of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG). The procurement of Dornier-228 aircraft, Next Generation Fast Patrol Vessels having high operational features in rough weather conditions and Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels with advanced technology and enhanced long-range operations, will enhance the capability of ICG to carry out surveillance, patrolling of maritime zone, search & rescue and disaster relief operations.

Towards the end of the meeting, the Defence Minister took a moment to honour late Indian Coast Guard (ICG) DG Rakesh Pal, who was also a member of DAC. The DG passed away due to a heart attack in Chennai on August 18, 2024. Shri Rajnath Singh highlighted DG Rakesh Pal’s remarkable contributions to the growth and expansion of ICG. He conveyed heartfelt condolences, prayers and unwavering support on behalf of the Ministry of Defence to the bereaved family. In a solemn tribute, all members of DAC then stood up to observe a moment of silence, paying their respects to late DG Rakesh Pal whose legacy will continue to inspire.

These acquisitions is aimed at modernizing the armed forces and ensuring better preparedness for various security challenges.

The projects will focus on developing and manufacturing defense equipment within India, promoting self-reliance and boosting the local defense industry.

These proposals are expected to significantly enhance India's defense preparedness and contribute to the overall modernization of the armed forces.

IIT Roorkee Professor Felicitated for Outstanding Contributions Towards Developing Technology for DRDO

IIT Roorkee serve as an important center of excellence in developing technology for DRDO to address critical technological challenges

Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT Roorkee) achieves another milestone. Prof Ramesh Chandra, Institute Instrumentation Centre, IIT Roorkee was honoured at the recent DRDO-Academia Conclave organized by Defence Research and Development Organizations (DRDO) on May 25 – 26, 2023 at DRDO Bhawan New Delhi. During the event, Hon'ble Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh felicitated the Professor from IIT Roorkee for his outstanding contributions to developing technology for DRDO. Prof. Ramesh Chandra and his group designed and developed hydrophobic, optically transparent, hard and corrosion-resistant coatings to improve the service life of structural components used in the Naval submarines, which will significantly help the Indian Naval Forces.

His project titled, "Development of Corrosion Resistant Hydrophobic Coatings for the Protection of structural components under saline water applications" focuses on the development of corrosion-resistant hydrophobic coatings that will prevent degradation and improve the durability of Defence equipment in submarines, among others. He and his research team conducted extensive electrochemical and morphological studies at facilities of the institute to ensure and develop effective hydrophobic coatings with excellent corrosion resistance capabilities.

Moreover, IIT Roorkee conducts Directed Research in research verticals with the DRDO and the institute has multiple Centre of Excellence established for the purpose. Research areas include Smart Infrastructure and Hardened Structwes for Defence Application; Energy Storage Devices; Landslide, Snow and Avalanche Studies; Pulsed Laser and Specialty Fiber; Shock and Detonics; Thermal Management and other-identified verticals for critical and futuristic defence technological requirements of DRDO. IIT Roorkee also has centres for Design (Matheatical modelling and simulation of Elastomer based shock absorption system, fabrication of High Quality Nanostructured Piezoelectric Thin Films for MEMS Devices, and optimizing the number of fire detectors in crew compartment of Armoured fighting vehicles (AFVs), among others. The total number of Research Projects that IIT Roorkee had with DRDO in the last five years is 44 out of which 21 Projects are ongoing and the rest 23 are having completed status. The total number of Consultancy Projects with DRDO in the last five years is 7.

On the auspicious occasion, Prof K K Pant, Director, IIT Roorkee, congratulated Prof. Chandra and stated, "Majority of industries are inherently faced with the problem of corrosion and steps for protection of materials from corrosion has been a topic of large interest to them. The advanced coating techniques developed by Prof. Chandra and his team have the potential to benefit multiple industries such as marine, pipeline, aerospace, automobiles, chemical, biotechnology processing plants, and construction. This recognition further emphasizes the importance of their research in addressing the pressing issue of corrosion and its implications for industry and national development."

Prof Ramesh Chandra, Institute Instrumentation Centre, IIT Roorkee, highlighted, "Hydrophobic coatings have been proven to significantly increase the life span of materials prone to oxidation/corrosion, resulting in huge material and cost savings. Such advanced coatings technologies have immense market potential for various applications such as marine, pipeline, aerospace, automobiles, chemical, biotechnology processing plants, and construction industries."

The recognition bestowed upon IIT Roorkee highlights the institutes exceptional achievements and contributions to developing technology for national defense, specifically in the context of the Defence Research and Development Organizations (DRDO). By designing and developing hydrophobic coatings to enhance the service life of structural components in Naval submarines, Professor Chandra has made significant strides in improving the durability and corrosion resistance of defense equipment.

Furthermore, this recognition also sheds light on the crucial role played by academic institutions, in this case, IIT Roorkee in advancing technology for national defense and industrial development. Institutes like IIT Roorkee serve as important centers of excellence, nurturing talented individuals, conducting cutting-edge research, and collaborating with defense organizations to address critical technological challenges. Their efforts contribute not only to the defense sector but also to various industries that can benefit from advancements in materials, coatings, and related technologies.

By acknowledging Professor Ramesh Chandra's achievements and the role of IIT Roorkee, the recognition emphasizes the importance of collaboration between academia and defense organizations in driving innovation, fostering technological advancements, and ultimately strengthening the nation's defense capabilities and industrial growth. 

About IIT Roorkee (https://www.iitr.ac.in/)

IIT Roorkee is an institute of national importance imparting higher education in engineering, sciences, management, architecture and planning, and humanities and socialsciences. Since its establishment in 1847, the Institute has played a vital role in providing technical human resources and know-how to the country. 

Acclimatization BootCamp (ABC) for Defense Startups Launched By Defense Minister At IIT Hyderabad

Hon’ble Defense Minister Shri Rajnath Singh launches Acclimatization BootCamp (ABC) for Defense Startups, a program by iTIC Incubator at IIT Hyderabad during DefExpo 2022

Highlights:

• A unique program by iTIC Incubator at IIT Hyderabad in collaboration with iDEX DIO
• ABC for Defense Startups would help civilian technology startups convert their innovations to defense applications
• 4-month program at IIT Hyderabad
• The first cohort would have 10-12 startups

iTIC Incubator at IIT Hyderabad, in collaboration with iDEX DIO (Innovations for Defense Excellence - Defense Innovation Organization), has designed a unique program to acclimatize relevant civilian tech startups into defense applications. Acclimatization Boot Camp for Defense Startups was launched yesterday by our Hon’ble Minister of Defense, Shri Rajnath Singh, at DefExpo 2022 Gandhinagar.

The ABC for Defense Startups would be a 4-month long program and would select 10-12 startups in their first cohort. These startups would be connected to the knowledge partners, which include serving and retired armed forces. These mentors would understand the technology of the startup and connect the use case for the same in defense applications. After narrowing down the problem statement mutually, a startup would build a prototype with the help of iTIC Incubator at IIT Hyderabad and run it through mentors to validate the solution. At the end of the boot camp, startups would be trained in writing proposals for grants and procurements. The aim of this boot camp is to acclimatize a startup with civilian technology, find a use case in defense, and help apply for grants and procurements for defense.

Shri Rajnath Singh, while launching the program, congratulated iTIC Incubator and iDEX teams and stated, “It is good to see iDEX and iTIC Incubator at IIT Hyderabad are collaborating and designing a new program. This will boost our defence ecosystem lot.’’

“Startups can apply to this program at www.itic.iith.ac.in/abcd. The deadline for applications is November 18, 2022, and the program kickstarts on December 8 onwards. Benefits for startups include feedback from the defense ecosystem, access to iTIC and IITH infrastructure, proposal writing for defense procurements and grants, and access to the defense market. Listing out these benefits to the startups under the program”, Prof B S Murty, Director IITH expressed his confidence in the success of the initiative and welcomed the startups to make use of this unique program.

About iTIC Incubator at IIT Hyderabad

iTIC is a Technology Business Incubator (TBI) under the aegis of the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH) and supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India. iTIC is a Not-For-Profit Society that focuses on creating a supportive and nourishing environment for budding entrepreneurs in the field of technology. The focus areas of iTIC incubator are Deep tech sectors such as Healthcare, AI/ML, Quantum Computing, AR/VR, Cybersecurity, Robotics, IOT, Industry 4.0, Blockchain, Electronics, Advanced materials, Drones, Biotechnology, etc. iTIC aims to help entrepreneurs leverage a premier quality research and startup ecosystem with the goal of building a comprehensive platform to practice innovation and entrepreneurship so that these entrepreneurial ideas can be turned into sustainable, scalable profit-making business ventures. iTIC provides support to startups such as Mentoring, Financial Aid, IP Support, Networking, and access to Dedicated office/ Coworking space, Software, IITH Technological Infrastructure, and Makerlab.

Since its inception in 2015, iTIC has supported 125+ startups through Pre-incubation, Incubation, and Acceleration programs and has sanctioned more than INR 8 crores to startups directly while supporting the startups in raising more than INR 50 crores from external sources. So far, the iTIC startups have generated more than INR 800 crores of revenues and created 1000+ jobs.

About IIT Hyderabad

Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH) is one of the eight new IITs established by the Government of India in 2008. In a short span of 14 years, the institute has become a top-ranker. It has 287 full-time faculty, ~3,800 students, 18+1 Departments + Centre for Interdisciplinary Program, nearly 200+ state-of-the-art laboratories, and five research and entrepreneurship centers. The institute has a strong research focus with approx. Rs 535+ crore of sanctioned research funding, with PhD scholars accounting for about 30% of total student strength. IITH has more than 7,500+ research publications with 1,00,000+ Citations, 190+ Published Patents, 1,700+ sponsored/consultancy projects with 500+ running projects, and about 100+ startups.

To know more, please visit https://www.iith.ac.in/.

Defence India Startup Challenge 5.0 Launched

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launches Defence India Startup Challenge 5.0

Urges private sector to contribute towards building a self-reliant defence industry; assures all possible support

Key highlights of RM’s address:

• DISC 5.0 is a reflection of Government’s resolve to create a self-reliant defence sector
• The challenge to take innovation, design & development to newer heights
• iDEX playing a crucial role in building a strong military & ‘AatmaNirbhar’ defence industry
• Government support to private sector in building ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’

Today, Defence Minister of India, Shri Rajnath Singh launched Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC) 5.0 under Innovations for Defence Excellence - Defence Innovation Organisation (iDEX-DIO) through video conferencing on August 19, 2021. Thirty five Problem Statements – 13 from the Services and 22 from Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) – were unveiled under DISC 5.0. These are in areas such as Situational awareness, Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, Aircraft-trainer, Non-lethal devices, 5G network, Under-water domain awareness, Drone SWARMS and Data Capturing. The Problem Statements, designed to ensure military advantage in the foreseeable future, are the highest in any edition, so far.

Lauding the efforts of iDEX-DIO, Shri Rajnath Singh, in his address, termed DISC 5.0 as another step towards independence in the defence sector as the launch comes at a time when the country is celebrating ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. Stating that DISC 5.0 is a reflection of Government’s resolve of creating an ‘AatmaNirbhar’ defence sector, he exuded confidence that this challenge will move forward from its earlier editions and take innovation, design & development to newer heights. He shed light on the previous four editions of DISC and said that more than 80 startups, MSMEs and individual innovators have joined as winners in over 40 technological areas. He added that modern and futuristic problem statements launched in DISC 5.0 demonstrate the confidence of young entrepreneurs and innovators in DISC.

Apply for iDEX Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC) 5.0 - https://idex.gov.in/form/application-form-defence-india-d

The Raksha Mantri underlined the importance of creating a strong, modern & well-equipped military and an equally capable & self-reliant defence industry, given the rapidly changing geo-political and security scenario in the world. To realise this vision, he said, iDEX is playing a crucial role by providing a platform wherein the Government, Services, think tanks, industry, startups and innovators can work together to help the defence & aerospace sectors reach full potential.

“Defence India Startup Challenge and Open Challenges provide many opportunities to our youth and entrepreneurs. They give a new direction to defence innovation and capabilities by highlighting the potential of India's science, technology and research”, said Shri Rajnath Singh. He added that iDEX4fauji is a similar initiative that gives an opportunity to the service personnel to showcase their talent in these fields.

Sharing his insights on the broad contours of iDEX, the Raksha Mantri stated that the initiative has succeeded in bridging the gap between talent and demand in the country. “iDEX provides a strong foundation of innovation, R&D to the industry. Initiatives like iDEX form a link between our youth, academia, R&D, start-ups and the Armed Forces,” he added.

Shri Rajnath Singh listed out measures taken by Ministry of Defence to promote innovation, such as including iDEX as a procurement avenue under Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP-2020); earmarking Rs 1,000 crore for domestic procurement through iDEX for financial year 2021-2022 and approving a budget of Rs 498.8 crore for the next five years to support over 300 startups and foster innovation in defence & aerospace sectors.

The Raksha Mantri expressed confidence that iDEX will support five times more start-ups over the next five years as the aim is to accelerate progress, reduce costs and complete procurement in a time bound manner. For this, he said, there is need to adopt the concept of 5 Is (Identify, Incubate, Innovate, Integrate and Indigenise).

Shri Rajnath Singh also referred to a number of initiatives taken by the Government, including steps to increase partnerships with the private sector, technology transfers and restrictions on import of more than 200 items, to promote self-reliance as well as generate employment opportunities. Commending various stakeholders for indigenously developing world-class technologies, he called for identifying and developing new technologies to take forward the vision of ‘Make in India – Make for the World’. He called upon the private sector to come forward and contribute towards building a self-reliant defence sector and assured all possible support of the government.

In his welcome address, Secretary (Defence Production) Shri Raj Kumar termed innovation and self-reliance as the two aspects of iDEX. He said India has the third largest startup ecosystem in the world and these startups are not just wealth creators but employment generators. He added that today the nature of warfare is technology-driven and these startups can play a crucial role in developing indigenous defence capabilities, reducing imports and improving exports.

Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar and other senior officials of Ministry of Defence were present at the launch of DISC 5.0. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria, Chief of the Army Staff General MM Naravane, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee Vice Admiral AK Jain; young innovators and representatives of the industry attended the event virtually.

The launch of DISC 5.0 by iDEX-DIO comes three years after the launch of DISC 1.0. The launch of DISC 5.0 is a massive leap towards leveraging the startup ecosystem to develop India’s defence technologies, equipment design and manufacturing capabilities. It will encourage startups to become more attuned to innovative concepts and inculcate the approach of creative thinking in India’s budding entrepreneurs.

The iDEX initiative was launched by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in April 2018 to achieve self-reliance and foster innovation & technology development in defence and aerospace sectors.

Defence India Startup Challenge-4 Launches for Achieving Self-Reliance in the spirit of AtmaNirbhar Bharat campaign

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launches Defence India Startup Challenge-4; says defence Startup ecosystem is a decisive step towards achieving self-reliance in the spirit of AtmaNirbhar Bharat campaign;

iDEX4Fauji launched for the first time to encourage innovation among soldiers

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched the Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC 4) during the iDEX event, featuring the initiatives aimed at expanding the horizons of Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) ecosystem in New Delhi today. iDEX4Fauji initiative and Product Management Approach (PMA) guidelines were also launched by the Raksha Mantri during the event. Each of these initiatives is expected to facilitate iDEX-DIO to scale up the program qualitatively and quantitatively.

iDEX4Fauji is a first of its kind initiative, launched to support innovations identified by members of the Indian Armed Forces and will bolster frugal innovation ideas from soldiers/ field formations. There are more than 13 Lakh service personnel working in the field and on borders, handling extreme conditions and equipment and would be having many ideas and innovations to improve such equipment. There was no mechanism to support such innovations. iDEX4Fauji would open this window and allow our Faujis to become part of the innovation process and get recognised and rewarded. Services Headquarters will provide support to the soldiers & field formations all over the country to ensure maximum participation.

Speaking on the occasion, Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh said that the iDEX initiative stands out as one of the most effective and well-executed defence Startupecosystem created in our country and it would be a decisive step towards achieving self-reliance in the spirit of the AtmaNirbhar Bharat campaign. Shri Rajnath Singh said, for the first time, an atmosphere has been created in the country when different stakeholders have been brought together to push for innovations in the defence sector. “In order to further strengthen our defence system and make it self- reliant the participation of private sector is also crucial. For this we have taken certain steps like partnerships with private sector, technology transfer, 74 % FDI through automatic route and the recently released negative list of 101 items for import ban after a stipulated period.” Raksha Mantri also said that only yesterday the government launched Defence Acquisition procedure 2020 which seeks to encourage the private industry to participate in the defence sector. Raksha Mantri also exhorted the Armed Forces to “make full use of the Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO) platform to meet their technological requirements and the Indian Startups to use this opportunity to become an integral part of our Defence enablers.”

The event was addressed among others by Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Shripad Yesso Naik, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar and Secretary, Department of Defence Production Shri Rajkumar.

Under Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC) 4, eleven challenges from Armed forces, OFB&DPSUs were thrown open to prospective startups, innovators, MSMEs alike to provide their innovative ideas on technologies which find their application in the defence sector. The challenges are as follows:

• Autonomous Underwater Swarm Drones
• Predictive, Preventive & Prescriptive Machine Monitoring 
• Super Resolution for Improving Spatial Resolution 
• AI based Satellite Image Analysis 
• Prediction and forecasting of atmospheric visibility 
• Computer Generated Targets for Virtual Training 
• Remote Real Time In-Flight Health Monitoring of Aircrew 
• MF-TDMA based Wideband SATCOM Modem 
• Foliage Penetration Radar 
• Reduction of RCS of Naval Warships 
• Target Detection in Chaff Environment 

In order to develop a 'right product and the product right', DIO has adopted the Product Management Approach to steer the prototype development to a market ready product. These guidelines are first of their kind and their release by Raksha Mantri is intended to monitor product development milestones achieved by iDEX winners against the requirements set by the Services/ DPSUs/ OFB.

The iDEX initiative of the Department of Defence Production was launched by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in April 2018 with the objective to encourage and nurture innovations in the Indian Defence sector and create an ecosystem where Startups, MSMEs and individual innovators could interact easily with the Indian defence establishment and provide the latest technological innovations for specific challenges experienced in operational environments through co-development and co-production of innovative solutions. The iDEX initiatives are executed by Defence Innovation Organisation, a Section 8 company of DPSUs BEL and HAL.

DIO has evolved and expanded the magnitude of its activities since inception in 2018:

 

1. iDEX-DIO has launched three rounds of Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC) with 18 problem statements from Armed Forces, DPSUs&OFB and identified 55+ start-ups/ individuals to receive innovation grants in technological areas through the Prototype funding guidelines called “Support for Prototype and Research Kickstart” (SPARK), which entail provisioning of grants upto Rs 1.5 crore to the Startups on the basis of milestones through multiple tranches, for prototype development.
2. DIO has entered into strategic partnership with leading incubators of the country and undergone international collaborations especially with Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) in US. 
3. For efficaciously taking forward the activities, DIO is hiring manpower, doing outreach, launched own website (www.idex.gov.in) & portal, launched 2 cycles of open challenge for supporting suo-moto innovations, SPARK II guidelines and an internship program etc. along with promulgating elaborate guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures. 
4. DDP has 9 Defence PSUs as pillars of defence production in the country and iDEX has enabled capacity building in DPSUs by seeding a culture of innovation and Research and Development. 
5. The iDEX event successfully brought together the iDEX stakeholders on a single platform i.e. Ministry of Defence (MoD), iDEX selected startups, partner incubators, Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), nodal agencies (Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force), NITI Aayog, DRDO, DPSUs, OFB, think tanks, private industry and Industry associations. More than 500 startups and innovators participated in the event through video conference.

Apply Here - https://idex.gov.in/apply_challenge.php

Mobile App for Countrywide Online Training of NCC Cadets launched by Defence Minister

India's Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh launched the Directorate General National Cadet Corps (DGNCC) Mobile Training App yesterday. The App will assist in conducting countrywide online training of NCC cadets.

In view of the restrictions imposed by COVID-19, training of NCC cadets has been affected adversely as it is mostly contact based training. Since schools/colleges are not likely to open in near future, a need was felt that training to NCC cadets should be imparted utilising the digital medium. Raksha Mantri also interacted with the NCC cadets via video conferencing during the launch of the App and also answered their questions. He wished them success and motivated them to excel in all spheres of life.



In his address to the NCC Cadets, Raksha Mantri said the app will be useful to them in digital learning and overcoming the difficulties posed by COVID-19 due to restrictions on direct physical interactions. But if one moves ahead with determination and self-confidence, he or she would be able to clear all hurdles and achieve success, he added. Shri Rajnath Singh praised the contribution of more than one lakh NCC Cadets who supported the frontline Corona warriors by executing various tasks in the fight against the pandemic. He said NCC imparts values of unity, discipline, service to the nation and several NCC cadets rose to become great personalities such as Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh.​​​ sports personality Anjali Bhagwat, former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. In addition Raksha Mantri himself was a NCC Cadet.

The DGNCC Mobile Training App aims at providing NCC cadets entire training material (syllabus, précis, training videos and frequently asked questions) on one platform. The App has been made interactive by including a query option. By using this option, a cadet can post his question related to the training syllabus and the same will be answered by a panel of qualified instructors.

This App will certainly be a positive step towards automation of NCC training, in line with Digital India vision of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and will go a long way in assisting the NCC cadets in easier access to training material in these testing times of pandemic.

Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar, Director General NCC Lt General Rajeev Chopra and other senior civil and military officials of the Ministry were also present on the occasion.