Indian companies to get DRDO missile tech for indigenous production
What's the story
The Indian government's push for self-reliance in defense manufacturing has received a major boost. The Defence Ministry has approved the transfer of all conventional missile system technologies developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to domestic industries. The move is aimed at promoting indigenous production and increasing participation of Indian companies in the country's defense ecosystem.
Strategic move
Major step toward boosting indigenous defense production capabilities
The Transfer of Technology (ToT) will enable eligible domestic industries to manufacture DRDO-developed missile technologies within India.
This is a major step toward bolstering the country's indigenous defense production capabilities.
The Ministry of Defence said that this initiative will help build greater manufacturing capacity in the country and deepen the domestic defense industrial base.
MSME involvement
MSMEs and technology partners to benefit from the initiative
The technology transfer initiative is also expected to create more opportunities for Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and other technology partners. The Ministry of Defence said that the move will enable these entities to participate in the missile systems supply chain.
Advanced production
Aatmanirbharta in defense
The technology transfer initiative will also support the development of advanced defense systems.
It will bring together DRDO's technological capabilities with the manufacturing capacity of Indian industry.
To note, the Indian Air Force has indigenised 97% of its operational fighter spares which it frequently uses in the past five years.
Also, the ministry had released an indigenisation list which covered 405 strategically important defence goods, with an estimated business potential of more than ₹3,000 crore.