Promotion of Indigenous Industries

Atmanirbhar Bharat aims at making Bharat more self reliant and it is well known fact that manufacturing potential of any nation concludes the GDP of a nation. As Britishers had taken raw materials from their colonies at cheaper rates and manufacture the finished product in their own country then selling at very higher price at their colonies. The similar strategy today China is following and relishing the highest export therefore economic prosperity. Bharat, now has essensed this bug in the country's economy therefore Make in India, Vocal for Local, National Skill Development Mission, StartUp India and Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan are introduced. If manufacturing sector has to be elevated then certainly indigenous industries must be supported by the government. When indigenous industries are promoted by the government, the products are consumed by the internal population and thus income flow circulates within the country only. 

Recently Asserting that India has embarked on the journey to achieve the goal of an inclusive and developed country, hon'ble President Murmu has stated that indigenous industries has a significant role in making country's economy self reliant, robust, sustainable and competitive. She highlighted that the government has taken several policy initiatives in the last few years and brought in reforms to encourage indigenous design, development and manufacturing of defence equipment. 

To promote indigenous technologies effectively, the country should prioritise four key areas: (i) enhancing private sector capacities, (ii) improving governance and relief response delivery, (iii) disseminating information at the grassroots level in local languages and (iv) creating new avenues for future expansion

Several Government Initiatives:- 

Now, in defence procurement projects according to priorities of capital items will be purchased  from domestic sources under the Defence Acquisition Procedure-2020, simplification of the industrial licensing procedure, liberalisation of the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy, launch of Mission DefSpace, introduction of the SRIJAN portal to facilitate indigenisation and establishment of two defence industrial corridors, are aimed at achieving self-reliance in the defence sector. Focus on developing skill among the youth through several vocational training centres, SMARTH scheme for enhancing skills under national skill development mission. 

The development of indigenous defence technologies by the Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) in India has been a major focus of the Indian government in recent years. The government has enacted and introduced a number of policies and initiatives to promote indigenisation, as a consequence of which, the DPSUs have made significant progress in developing indigenous defence technologies and manufacturing them, in some cases in collaboration with the Defence Private Sector.

The role of Defence Public Sector Undertakings and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is pivotal in shaping and nurturing an effective defence manufacturing ecosystem in India. They can play a significant role in fostering a robust aerospace and defence manufacturing ecosystem in India.

As a result of investing indigenisation in the defence services and believing in the domestic talent, India has achieved that was once imagined. India's defence export have risen from 686 crores in the FY 2013-14 to nearly 16,000 crores in the FY 2022-23. More than 85 countries are importing India's defence export and Indian Defence Industries have shown the world it's capabilities in design and development and exported much advanced and wide range defence products like Brahmos missile, Dornier 228, PINAKA rockets and launchers, radars, simulators etc. Greater demand for the LCA- Tejas, aircraft carriers and MRO activities are also increasing very rapidly.

Way Forward :- 

To achieve the target of indigenisation of industries the government no doubt is heading in the right direction by laying emphasis on "Make in India". It is the implementation that needs to be fine tuned. Some of the steps that can be taken in this direction are:

@ Permanent Arbitration Cell can be set up to deal with all objections and disputes.

@ Boosting Private Sector is necessary to infuse efficient and effective technology 

@ The private sector must be allotted ample opportunities and great contracts in order to strengthen their confidence and reduce the trust deficit between private and government sector.

@ Software Industry and technologies like Artificial intelligence and cyber security should be used to develop and manufacture the “chip” indigenously.

@ Industries that are structured to be self sufficient I areas of product design and development should be supported financially and technology wise.

@ In⎯house design capability should be improved amongst the three services, the Navy has progressed well on the path of indigenisation primarily because of the in⎯house design capability, the Naval Design Bureau. Hence, they do not have to depend on the DRDO for the design & development of the complete ship, but outsource the sub⎯systems for them to develop.

@ Robust supply chain is critical for a indigenous industries development and steps to optimize costs. Indian SMEs are playing a key role in the global supply chain of OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturer