NEW DELHI: The military needs to maintain high operational readiness along the borders with China and Pakistan and along the entire coast, while also focusing on developing futuristic capabilities to effectively counter emerging threats, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said on Monday .
“Future conflicts will be unpredictable. The ever-changing world order has forced everyone to revise their strategy,” Singh said, addressing top naval commanders aboard the indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant off the coast of Goa.
“Constant vigilance must be maintained on the northern and western borders, as well as on the entire coast. We have to be ready to face all the challenges ahead,” she added.
With the Navy remaining steadfast and responsive in protecting national interests in the maritime sector, its mission-based deployments have also strengthened India’s position as the “preferred security partner” of friendly foreign countries in the Indian Ocean region.
Secure borders are the prime requirement for ensuring social and economic progress, the minister said, saying India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is advancing in ‘Amrit Kaal’ with ‘renewed impetus and zeal’ to achieve this objective.
Emphasizing that economic prosperity and security go hand in hand, Singh said the defense sector has emerged as “a major demand creator” which is boosting the economy and ensuring the country’s development.
“In the next 5 to 10 years, the defense sector is expected to receive orders worth more than $100 billion, which will become an important partner in the country’s economic development,” he said.
“Today our defense sector is on track. Soon, when it takes off, it will transform the country’s economy. If we want to see India among the world’s top economic powers by the end of ‘Amrit Kaal’, we need to take bold steps to become a defense superpower,” she added.
A huge country like India needs to be completely self-sufficient and not dependent on others for its security, he said, listing the various steps taken by the government to get ‘atmanirbharta’ to its defence. These range from notifying four ‘positive indigenisation lists’ and raising the FDI limit in the defense manufacturing sector to creating an enabling environment for Indian suppliers including MSMEs and allocating a record 75% of the defense capital procurement budget for the domestic industry in 2023-2024.
“Future conflicts will be unpredictable. The ever-changing world order has forced everyone to revise their strategy,” Singh said, addressing top naval commanders aboard the indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant off the coast of Goa.
“Constant vigilance must be maintained on the northern and western borders, as well as on the entire coast. We have to be ready to face all the challenges ahead,” she added.
With the Navy remaining steadfast and responsive in protecting national interests in the maritime sector, its mission-based deployments have also strengthened India’s position as the “preferred security partner” of friendly foreign countries in the Indian Ocean region.
Secure borders are the prime requirement for ensuring social and economic progress, the minister said, saying India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is advancing in ‘Amrit Kaal’ with ‘renewed impetus and zeal’ to achieve this objective.
Emphasizing that economic prosperity and security go hand in hand, Singh said the defense sector has emerged as “a major demand creator” which is boosting the economy and ensuring the country’s development.
“In the next 5 to 10 years, the defense sector is expected to receive orders worth more than $100 billion, which will become an important partner in the country’s economic development,” he said.
“Today our defense sector is on track. Soon, when it takes off, it will transform the country’s economy. If we want to see India among the world’s top economic powers by the end of ‘Amrit Kaal’, we need to take bold steps to become a defense superpower,” she added.
A huge country like India needs to be completely self-sufficient and not dependent on others for its security, he said, listing the various steps taken by the government to get ‘atmanirbharta’ to its defence. These range from notifying four ‘positive indigenisation lists’ and raising the FDI limit in the defense manufacturing sector to creating an enabling environment for Indian suppliers including MSMEs and allocating a record 75% of the defense capital procurement budget for the domestic industry in 2023-2024.
