PATH TO PRIDE - THE TRANSITION OF INDIAN DEFENCE INDUSTRY FROM MAKE IN INDIA TO MAKE FOR THE WORLD

Aviation World participated at the DefExpo 22 edition in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. This feature is post event report which highlights major developments of the show, national & international participations, policy initiatives and vision of India towards achieving goal of not only Make in India but Make for the World.

- Vishal Kashyap

This 12th edition of the recently concluded DefExpo 2022 achieved many milestones for the Indian defence sector. For the first time, only India based defence companies were allowed to participate and showcase the growing prowess of the domestic defence industry, which is one of the major drivers of the nation's resolve to achieve 'Make in India, Make for the World' as envisioned by the Prime Minister. The biennial exhibition supported and showcased and forge partnerships for the Indian aerospace and defence manufacturing sectors with Indian as well as global customers to achieve the overall objective of catering to domestic requirements while fulfilling the needs of friendly foreign countries.

The Def Expo 22 was organised on the theme 'Path to Pride'. The Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh termed DefExpo 22, exclusively for Indian companies, as a humble tribute of an 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' to Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, who was the pillar of the Swadeshi movement.

India's resolve to be among the leading nations in the defence & aerospace sectors in the next 25 years is yielding good results. We are swiftly moving towards becoming the pioneers in design, development and manufacturing at a global level. We are witnessing a transformational journey from being the largest defence importer to a net exporter. This DefExpo will further accelerate the pace of this journey," added MoD.

The MoD described 'Path to Pride' as not just a theme of DefExpo 2022, but a 'Make in India, Make for the World' vision of a 'New India'. He called it a continuous process in which all the stakeholders public and private sectors, MSMES, academia, start-ups and Research & Development establishments - work together with the aim to provide innovative ideas and state-of-the-art products to the world.