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Informist, Thursday, Mar. 19, 2026

 

NEW DELHI – India must work in mission mode to emerge as a global hub of indigenous drone manufacturing in the next few years, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said here Thursday. He was addressing the inaugural session of the National Defence Industries Conclave, organised by the Department of Defence Production.

 

Singh stressed on the urgent need to build a drone production ecosystem to ensure strategic autonomy, enhance defence preparedness and make the country self-reliant in view of the present geopolitical uncertainties.

 

He said the ongoing military conflicts, such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the Iran-Israel-US conflict, prove that drones and counter-drone technologies are destined to play a pivotal role in future warfare. Self-reliance in drone manufacturing is essential not merely at the product level, but at the component level as well, he added. He called for the active contribution of the private sector for this mission.

 

"From the drone's moulds to its software, engines, and batteries, everything must be manufactured in India. This is no easy task. In most countries where drones are manufactured, a significant number of critical components are currently imported from China," Singh said.

 

A number of start-ups, micro, small, and medium enterprises, winners of Innovations for Defence Excellence, or iDEX, defence public sector undertakings, private defence companies, innovators, and policymakers are taking part in the two-day event, themed 'Advanced Manufacturing Technologies', that started Thursday.

 

The defence minister said as of February, around 676 start-ups, MSMEs, and individual innovators have joined the defence innovation ecosystem since the inception of iDEX in 2018. So far, 58 prototypes have received clearance for procurement, valued at around INR 38.53 billion, while 45 procurement contracts worth INR 23.26 billion have already been signed.

 

"These figures demonstrate that innovation is gradually materialising into tangible products and technologies, and the role played by our start-ups and MSMEs in this transformation is steadily gaining strength," Singh said. "Our MSMEs must advance towards the adoption of Industry 4.0. It is when both horizontal and vertical integration occur simultaneously that a robust innovation ecosystem is established." Horizontal integration implies that MSMEs from diverse sectors connect and collaborate. Vertical integration means MSMEs partner with large-scale industries, engage with emerging technological domains, and cultivate expertise in fields such as artificial intelligence, automation, robotics, and additive manufacturing.  End

 

Reported by Asim Khan

Edited by Tanima Banerjee

 

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