Friday, 17 May, 2024
By: Yash Gupte
Considering the increasing security risks India is facing, the defence manufacturing sector is expected to experience significant expansion. Image Source: IANS
The bridge's fast launching and recovery characteristics allow it to be used over a variety of obstacles, including canals and ditches. The equipment can keep up with wheeled and tracked motorised vehicles and is incredibly mobile, adaptable, and tough.
The Ministry of Defense has approved the proposal for the indigenous manufacturing of 41 sets of Modular Bridges for the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army, providing a significant boost to the indigenisation of defence equipment under "Atmanirbhar Bharat." Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) planned and developed these game-changing bridges, and Larsen & Toubro (L&T), as DRDO's designated production partner, will build them. The contract for the procurement of Modular Bridges was signed with L&T on February 08, 2023 at an estimated cost of over Rs 2,585 crore.
Seven carrier vehicles based on 8x8 Heavy Mobility Vehicles and two launcher vehicles based on 10x10 Heavy Mobility Vehicles must be included in each set of the Modular Bridge. Each set must be able to mechanically launch a 46-meter assault bridge with a single span and full decking. The bridge's fast launching and recovery characteristics allow it to be used over a variety of obstacles, including canals and ditches. The equipment can keep up with wheeled and tracked motorised vehicles and is incredibly mobile, adaptable, and tough.
The modular bridges will replace the manually-launched Medium Girder Bridges (MGB) that are currently being used in the Indian Army. The Modular Bridges that are designed and produced domestically will have many advantages over MGB, including a longer span, quicker construction, and mechanical launching with retrieval capability. The procurement of these bridges will give a major boost to the bridging capability of the Indian Army on the Western Front.
The Government of India has been focusing on making India a ‘defence exporting nation’ rather than a ‘defence importing nation.’
The defence manufacturing sector has seen some major developments, investments and support from the government in the recent past. The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) granted Acceptance of Necessity (AON) to capital acquisition bids totaling Rs. 7,965 crore ($1.07 billion) for the modernisation and operational needs of the armed services in November 2021, supporting the "Make in India" drive. The government is focusing on making India an export country in the field of defence. Considering the increasing security risks India is facing, the defence manufacturing sector is expected to experience significant expansion. This will increase demand for defence technology. Incentivised by various government reforms, India is quickly ramping up its manufacturing capacity. The Ministry of Defence has been focusing on boosting up the defence production in India in different ways. The chart below shows the defence production in India from 2016 to 2022.
Source: IBEF
The Ministry of Defence has also been rapidly increasing its footprint in the indigenous manufacturing of the advanced artillery systems. This was not only visible through the use of indigenous 105 mm howitzer at the Republic Day celebrations but also through the use of Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) at the Independence Day Celebrations at the Red Fort in 2022. As part of the Indian Army's artillery modernisation programme, the DRDO has taken over the development of the new generation of weapons. Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in Pune, Maharashtra is the nodal laboratory of DRDO for design and development of ATAG along with other laboratories of the defence body.
Also, in order to promote indigenous design and development of defence equipment ‘Buy {Indian-IDDM (Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured)}’ category in the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020 has been accorded top most priority for procurement of capital equipment.
The defence production in India was at an all-time high during 2017-18 at $12.2 Billion. There was a decline in the defence production in 2018-19 and 2019-20. One of the major reasons was the covid-19 pandemic which resulted in the nationwide lockdown for a long period of time and also the disruption in supply chains. But the government once again ramped up its efforts to increase the defence production in India as this is evident from the figures of 2020-21. The defence production increased to $10.9 Billion in the year 2020-21 and it ascended to $11.85 Billion in 2021-22.
In an effort to boost the defense sector and increase the infusion of FDI, the government in September 2020 revised the regulations and permitted FDI under the automatic route up to 74 percent and 100 percent through the government route in any area, where it is likely to provide access to contemporary technologies. The Defence ministry has projected defence production worth $25 Billion by 2025. Private defence manufacturing companies, in particular defence equipment manufacturing companies in India, have benefited from this initiative as it created greater demand opportunities. These reforms are helping to meet the Atmanirbhar Bharat objectives and also tend to establish India as a defence equipment exporting country in the world.
