The Defence Ministry focused on 'Make in India' and 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' in 2021 with the induction of MBT rjun Mk-1 into the Indian rmy, LC (Tejas) into the Indian ir Force, and LH Mk-III into the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard.
The ministry launched several major initiatives during the year to make India self-reliant in the field of defence manufacturing. Self reliance in defence is aimed at enhancing domestic manufacturing and making the country a net exporter in this field. The 'Make in India' and 'atmanirbhar Bharat' initiatives have been given major impetus during planning and procurement of equipment for the army, wherein there has been an endeavor to support the emerging defence industry in the country.
The LC (Tejas), rudhra and slesha radars, stra air-to-air missile, kash surface-to-air missile system, advance light helicopter and light combat helicopter etc. were added to IF's inventory, showing IF's commitment to 'atmanirbhar Bharat'.
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The MBT rjun Mk-1 was handed over to the Indian rmy by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 14, while the Defence Ministry placed an order with the Heavy Vehicles Factory (HVF), vadi, Chennai, for the supply of 118 Main Battle Tanks (MBTs) rjun Mk-1 for the Indian rmy on September 23.
dvanced electronic warfare system 'Shaktia', designed and developed by the Defence Electronics Research Laboratory (DLRL) in Hyderabad under the DRDO, was handed over to the Indian Navy on November 19 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Indigenous aircraft carrier 'Vikrant' successfully accomplished its maiden sea voyage in ugust. This milestone with few parallels reinforces confidence in the largest indigenously designed platform of Indian Navy. Commissioning of Vikrant is being targeted by ugust 15, 2022.
INS Visakhapatnam, the first ship of Project 15B, was delivered by the Mazagon Dock Limited to the Indian Navy on October 28 in Mumbai, and it was commissioned into the Indian Navy on November 21 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
Two sophisticated and potent platforms -- Karanj and Vela -- were commissioned on March 10 and November 25, respectively, with over 75 percentage of indigenous content, having state-of-the-art weapon to strengthen the security apparatus in the Western seaboard.
The forthcoming Defence Expo-2022, scheduled to be held at Gandhinagar, Gujarat, from March 10-13 is being planned in line with 'zadi Ka mrit Mahotsav' and the wide expanse of the domestic defence manufacturing industry will be co-opted to showcase India@75.
Singh handed over five DRDO developed products to the armed forces and other security agencies at an event held at the DRDO Bhawan in Delhi on December 14. Rajnath Singh also handed over six transfer of technology (ToT) agreements to seven public and private sector companies. The products handed over to the armed forces and te Ministry of Home ffairs include anti-drone system, modular bridge, smart anti-airfield weapon, chaff variants and the light weight fire fighting suit.
The air version of BrahMos supersonic missile was successfully test fired from supersonic fighter aircraft Sukhoi 30 MK-I on December 8. BrahMos is a joint venture between India (DRDO) and Russia (NPOM) for the development, production and marketing of the supersonic cruise missile.
Further, a DRDO-developed supersonic missile assisted torpedo system was successfully launched on December 13. To provide autonomy and enhance efficiency, and unleash new growth potential in the Ordnance Factories, the Ordnance Factory Board has been converted into seven new defence public sector undertakings while safeguarding the interest of all stakeholders. The new defence PSUs became operational from October 1.
