Rajnath invites Swedish companies to invest in defense sector
Defense Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday invited Swedish companies to invest in defense corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu to boost bilateral trade between India and Sweden in the defense sector. Emphasizing that the India-Sweden partnership has great potential, he expressed the strong capabilities of the Indian defense industry in various sectors and the Indian defense industry to collaborate with Swedish companies for co-development and co-production in areas of mutual interest. highlighted the desire.
Singh said this while addressing a webinar organized on India-Sweden Defense Industry Cooperation.
On Defense Acquisition Process (DAP) 2020, the Defense Minister said that it encourages domestic manufacturing and provides a strong base for India to emerge as a defense manufacturing hub. He highlighted that policy decisions like FDI liberalization and ease of doing business are attracting top defense companies of the world and joint venture establishments in India.
Ease of FDI norms and introduction of Procurement (Global – Manufacturer in India) in Defense Acquisition Process (DAP) 2020 invites foreign OEMs to participate in the opportunities offered by the Indian defense industry.
He said, foreign OEMs can set up manufacturing facilities individually or can partner with Indian companies through a joint venture or technology agreement to capitalize on the Make in India opportunity.
Inviting Swedish companies to invest in defense corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, Rajnath Singh said they can benefit from unique incentives being offered by state governments and availability of highly skilled workforce in India.
The Defense Minister said Swedish firms already have a major presence in India. There is a lot of scope for co-production and co-development between the Swedish and Indian defense industries. Indian industry can also supply spares to Swedish industries. The technology-focused FDI policy will enable Indian industry to collaborate with Swedish companies in the field of niche and proven military technologies.
Defense Minister Singh said that India has a vast defense industrial base with 41 Ordnance Factories, nine Defense Public Sector Undertakings and expanding private sector industries supported by an ecosystem of over 12,000 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, along with He added that Indian defense industries have expertise on a wide range of high-tech defense systems for air, land, sea and space applications.
He said, India has a strong shipbuilding industry. The ships built by Indian shipyards are of global standards and are extremely cost effective. He said that India and Sweden can cooperate in the shipbuilding industry for mutual benefit.
Rajnath Singh appreciated the continuous efforts of SIDM, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and SOFF to strengthen industrial cooperation between the two countries.
A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between SIDM and SOFF to promote bilateral defense industrial relations on the occasion, setting up of a dedicated Joint Working Group to take forward the mutual objectives.
Along with this Rajnath Singh also released the first edition of SIDM Member Directory 2020-21. The directory lists the capabilities of 437 companies in the defense and aerospace sector, facilitates access to information on Indian industry and serves as a solid reference for the global defense community. The second positive indigenization list of purchases of latest 108 items has also been included in the directory.
Defense Minister Rajnath Singh was the chief guest at the event, while Sweden’s Defense Minister Peter Hultachsti was the special guest. Indian Ambassador to Sweden Tanmay Lal, Swedish Ambassador to India Claus Molin, Defense Secretary Dr. Ajay Kumar, Secretary (Defence Production) Raj Kumar, other senior officials from the Defense Ministries of both countries, representatives of the Indian and Swedish Defense Industries and SIDM And SOFF officials also participated in the webinar.
