Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh today said that India’s domestic defence production has increased from 46 thousand crore rupees in 2014 to a record over 1 lakh 78 thousand crore rupees in the last financial year.
Mr Singh also said that defence exports, which registered at only 1 thousand crore rupees before 2014, have risen to nearly 40 thousand crore rupees due to the growing global demand for indigenously manufactured Indian defence equipment.
Mr Singh was speaking after laying the foundation stone of a state-of-the-art 10,000-ton Aluminium Extrusion Press at the Ordnance Factory of Yantra India Limited in Ambazari, Nagpur, this afternoon.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Secretary, Department of Defence Production, Sanjeev Kumar, were present on the occasion.
The Defence Minister said that while major defence equipment often receives attention, the smaller components used in these systems play an equally important role in enhancing the efficiency and performance of war weapons.
Defence Minister noted that components manufactured through the proposed Aluminium Extrusion Press will not only be used in defence equipment but also in machinery employed by organisations such as the Railways, ISRO and DRDO. Mr Singh, while hailing the performance of Yantra India Limited, expressed confidence that the company, currently a Miniratna enterprise, would soon achieve Maharatna status through its excellent performance post-corporatisation.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that indigenously developed defence systems under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative had demonstrated India’s defence capabilities before the world and Operation Sindoor was a testimony to it. He said the new Aluminium Extrusion Press at Ambazari would strengthen the defence manufacturing ecosystem in Nagpur and the Vidarbha region.
The proposed facility, with the capacity to process 10 thousand metric tonnes of aluminium, is expected to emerge as a significant national asset for the defence manufacturing sector. It will enhance the country’s capability to produce large-scale, high-strength and precision aluminium alloy extrusions required for the defence and space sectors. The project is also expected to reduce dependence on imports of aluminium extruded components and provide further impetus to indigenous manufacturing under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.
