NEW DELHI: the Defence Expo 2020 in Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow city is going to be by far the biggest expo as a high number of companies have registered this year. The number of international companies confirming their presence at the expo has also gone up as compared to previous expos.
Ministry of Defence (MoD) in its release said, 'The number of companies registered for participating in the 11th edition of the biennial mega defence exhibition, DefExpo 2020, to be held at Uttar Pradesh capital Lucknow between February 5-9, 2020; has reached 1,000. In the DefExpo 2018, held in Chennai, 702 companies had participated. Thus, it has become by far the biggest ever DefExpo to be held in India.'
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The number of participating foreign companies has also increased to 165 from the previous figure of 160 as informed by the Ministry. Apart from this, over 70 countries are expected to participate.
The booked exhibition space by exhibitors for DefExpo 2020 has gone up by 60 per cent to over 42,800 square metres, compared to around 26,774 during the last edition.
Ministry informed that Defence Ministers and Service Chiefs of 35 countries have confirmed their participation for the DefExpo. 'A substantial number of Memoranda of Undertaking (MoUs) are expected to be inked during the Expo, resulting in forging of new business collaborations.' said the MoD.
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The theme of this year's Expo is 'India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub'. The Expo also has a sub-theme called 'Digital Transformation of Defence' which aligns with the concept of the future battlefield.
Apart from displaying industrial prowess and huge potential for the investors, the UP government will organise several cultural programmes showcasing rich cultural heritage of the northern state. A unique experience for the visitors is planned at the Tent City, which is being especially erected at the venue.
The Central government has set up the Defence Industrial Corridor in Uttar Pradesh. In this regard, the Government of UP has planned to build a defence manufacturing corridor along with the proposed Bundelkhand Expressway which will help in making India self-reliant in the field of defence production.
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The expo will play a positive role as, 'The DefExpo will play the role of a catalyst in attracting not only investments but also cutting-edge technologies to the region.' Ministry of Defence said.
The show will be marked with numerous attractions such as live demonstrations of the services, DPSUs and industry showing the land, naval, air and internal security systems in action.
Also, business seminars will be organised by both international and Indian Industry chambers viz.
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), SYNERGIA, Directorate of Standardisation (DOS)/Department of Defence Production (DDP), US-India Business Council (USIBC), US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), etc.