Underlining the need for better synergy between Defence PSUs and private sector, Vice Admiral Satish Soni has said that the private sector should play a bigger role to meet the requirements of the Armed Forces. Defence corporates should invest in Research and Development, said Vice Admiral Satish Soni, Commanding-in-Chief of the Souther Naval Command.
“Currently in India, it is the DRDO which has the responsibility towards R&D in niche defence technologies and our investments are very modest. Even smaller nations like Israel and South Korea spend larger percentages of their GDPs on R&D. In developed countries private sector contributes a major share of the total R&D funding,” he pointed out.
Speaking at the inaugural function of NAMEXPO 2013, the five-day naval and maritime exposition and conference, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) along with the Indian Navy, state government and Ministries of MSME and Shipping, at the Cochin Port Trust premises on Monday, Admiral Soni stressed the need for indigenisation. He, however, added that indigenisation should not be at the cost of critical capabilities.
“There are many niche areas where we are still lagging. Weapons and sensors, propulsion are a few areas that come to mind where we are largely dependent on the developed world. While it is true that the DRDO has made outstanding contributions in the field of missile technology, we still have a long bridge to cross, and it cannot be crossed with isolated efforts but needs the support of all resources of our country - be it public or private,” the Admiral pointed out.
Inaugurating the conference, state Ports and Excise Minister K Babu opined that “whilst indigenisation and self-reliance are important, we should also focus on exports. Without exports no business can be sustained in the longer run.” The minister pointed out that India should leverage its buying clout and the significant decline in the global defence industry spends. “Foreign firms are now looking at India as an attractive destination to forge alliances for more cost-effective production of defence items,” he added.
A Sivthanu Pillai, CMD BrahMos, K K M Kutty, past chairman CII Southern Region, Jose Dominic, past chairman, CII Kerala State and Gurpal Singh, Principal Advisor, CII were also present. The five-day event will showcase naval systems, avionics, underwater systems and a wide array of other naval and maritime products.
Defence PSUs and manufacturers from across the globe including from Russia, Germany, US, France, Japan and UK are attending the conference and expo.