Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the NIIO (Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation) Seminar 'Swavlamban'. Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said that the goal of self-reliance in the Indian defence forces is very important for the India of the 21st century. Organising the first 'Swavlamban' (self-reliance) seminar for a self-reliant Navy is an important step in this direction.

The Prime Minister said that the resolution of creating 75 indigenous technologies in this period of making new resolutions for India is inspiring in itself and he expressed the confidence that it will be fulfilled very soon. Still, he said that this is kind of the first step. "We have to work to continuously increase the number of indigenous technologies. Your goal should be that when India celebrates 100 years of its independence, at that time our Navy should be at an unprecedented height", he added.

Referring to the importance of oceans and coasts in India's economy, the Prime Minister said that the role of the Indian Navy is continuously increasing and therefore self-reliance of the Navy is of critical importance.

Making India self-reliant in defence sector! Addressing the Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation Seminar 'Swavlamban'. https://t.co/PNVYyGnYsu

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 18, 2022

Recalling the glorious maritime tradition of the country, the Prime Minister said that the defence sector of India used to be very strong even before independence. At the time of independence, there were 18 ordnance factories in the country, where many types of military equipment including artillery guns, were made in the country. India was an important supplier of defence equipment in World War II. "Our howitzers, machine guns made at the Ishapur Rifle Factory, were considered the best. We used to export a lot. But then what happened that at one point in time we became the world's biggest importer in this field?", he asked. He said like the countries who capitalised on the challenge of the World War to emerge as the big arms exporters, India too turned adversity into opportunity during the Corona period and made strides in economy, manufacturing and science. He lamented the fact that during the initial decades of the Independence, there was no focus on the development of defence production and research and development was severely limited due to it being restricted to the government sector. "Innovation is critical and it has to be indigenous. Imported goods can't be a source of innovation", he said. He also stressed the need for a change in mindset of attraction for imported goods.

The Prime Minister said that the self-reliant defence system is critical for the economy and also from the strategic point of view. He said that the country has worked in mission mode to reduce this dependence after 2014. The Prime Minister remarked that the Government has given new strength to our public sector defence companies by organising them in different sectors. Today we are making sure that we connect our premier institutions like IITs with defence research and innovation. "Learning from the approach of the past decades, today we are developing a new defence ecosystem with the strength of everyone's efforts. Today defence R&D has been opened for the private sector, academia, MSMEs and start-ups", he added. This has led to a new speed, in long pending defence projects and the Prime Minister expressed the confidence that the wait for commissioning of the first indigenous aircraft carrier will be over soon.

Creating 75 indigenous technologies is kind of the first step. We have to work to increase their number continuously. Your goal should be that our Navy is at an unprecedented height when India celebrates 100 years of its independence: PM @narendramodi#AzadiKaAmritMahotsav pic.twitter.com/ApBjMx3zkd

— SpokespersonNavy (@indiannavy) July 18, 2022

In the last 8 years, the Prime Minister noted that the Government has not only increased the defence budget, "we have also ensured that this budget is useful in the development of the defence manufacturing ecosystem in the country itself. Today, a large part of the budget earmarked for the purchase of defence equipment is being spent on procurement from Indian companies." He also complemented the defence forces for preparing a list of 300 items that will not be imported.

In the last 4-5 years, the Prime Minister said that the defence imports have come down by about 21 per cent. Today we are moving fast from the biggest defence importer to a big exporter. Last year 13 thousand crore rupees worth of defence export was done with more than 70 percent of which being from the private sector, he pointed out.

The Prime Minister noted that now the threats to national security have also become widespread, the methods of warfare are also changing. Earlier we used to imagine our defence only till land, sea and sky. Now the circle is moving towards space, moving towards cyberspace, moving towards economic, social space. In such a scenario, the Prime Minister said that we have to move anticipating the future challenges and change ourselves accordingly. Self-reliance will help the country a great deal in this regard, he said.

Prime Minister stresses on the need for indigenous innovation to achieve 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'; says, 'whole of the Nation' approach is the need of the hour for defence of the nation. pic.twitter.com/qFxmqnNDml

— A. Bharat Bhushan Babu (@SpokespersonMoD) July 18, 2022

The Prime Minister warned against the new danger. He said "we also have to intensify our war against forces challenging India's self-confidence, our self-reliance. As India is establishing itself on the global stage, there are constant attacks through misinformation, disinformation and false publicity, etc. Keeping faith, the forces that are harming India's interests, whether in the country or abroad, have to be thwarted in their every effort. National defence is no longer limited to borders, but is much broader. Therefore it is equally necessary to make every citizen aware about it." Therefore, he continued "as we are moving forward with the 'whole of the government' approach for a self-reliant India, similarly, the 'whole of the Nation' approach is the need of the hour for the defence of the nation." "This collective national consciousness of various people of India is the strong basis of security and prosperity", the Prime Minister concluded.

NIIO Seminar 'Swavlamban'

A key pillar of Atmanirbhar Bharat is attaining self-reliance in the Defence Sector. To further this endeavour, during the programme, the Prime Minister unveiled 'SPRINT Challenges', which are aimed at giving a boost to the usage of indigenous technology in the Indian Navy. As a part of the 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav', NIIO, in conjunction with the Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), aims at inducting at least 75 new indigenous technologies/products into the Indian Navy. This collaborative project is named SPRINT (Supporting Pole-Vaulting in R&D through iDEX, NIIO and TDAC).

The Seminar aimed to engage Indian industry and academia towards achieving self-reliance in the Defence sector. The two-day Seminar (July 18-19)) provided a platform for leaders from Industry, Academia, Services and Government to come together on a common platform to ideate and come up with recommendations for the Defence Sector. Sessions dedicated to Innovation, Indigenisation, Armament and Aviation were held. The second day of the Seminar witnessed outreach to the Indian Ocean Region, in line with the government's vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region).