“Self-confidence and secure borders are essential to make India a powerful nation,” said Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh at an event in New Delhi on October 15, 2022. In his speech, Raksha Mantri reiterated the government’s unwavering commitment to transform India by 2047 will become one of the most powerful countries and claims that the Ministry of Defense (MoD) is leaving no stone unturned to achieve Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ vision.
Shri Rajnath Singh emphasized the Government’s focus on equipping the armed forces with state-of-the-art weapons/equipment manufactured by an independent defense industry. He listed a number of steps the MoD has taken to reduce import dependency, including issuing positive lists of indigenous people. Citing the example of the recently commissioned INS Vikrant, which has 76 percent indigenous content, he said India has the capability and capacity to produce modern weapons and platforms. He exuded confidence that the country will start producing modern and effective platforms for water, land, sky and space defense in the next ten years.
Raksha Mantri appreciated the fact that due to the steps taken by the government in the last few years, defense industry exports have seen a massive jump. “There was a time when India only exported defense equipment worth Rs 1,900 crore. The figure has crossed Rs 13,000 crore today. We have set a target of Rs 1.75 crore defense manufacturing by 2025, including exports worth Rs 35,000 crore. We are well on our way to achieving the goal,” he said.
Another aspect at the core of the government’s vision, Shri Rajnath Singh said that all efforts are being made to increase connectivity with the remote areas to further enhance the preparedness of the armed forces and connect the country with the people living in the border area. region. He appreciated the exceptional synergy between the armed forces and the general public in the North Eastern states and their patriotism despite challenging circumstances.
Raksha Mantri termed the Northeast as an arm of India which was ignored for a long time after independence. He asserted that the progress of the North East has been one of the prime focus areas of the government headed by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi since the beginning as the region is crucial for the economic, social, political and strategic development of the country. Earth.
“Our biggest achievement in the last 8.5 years has been the restoration of peace and prosperity in the North Eastern states. Since 2014, nearly every state in the Northeast has seen around an 80-90 percent reduction in violent incidents. Most extremist organizations have either been rooted out or have given up and joined the mainstream. The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act has been removed from 80 per cent of the areas. This was possible because now there is peace, stability and resilience in the region,” said Shri Rajnath Singh.
Raksha Mantri described connectivity with the North East as another achievement of the government in the last 8.5 years. He said that air, road and rail connectivity infrastructure has been strengthened and there is now a direct link to the region. He termed the Union Cabinet’s approval of the Prime Minister’s Initiative for the Development of the North-Eastern Region (PM-DevINE) as evidence of the government’s commitment to the progress of the North-Eastern states. The progress of the North-Eastern region is key to creating a strong, prosperous and self-reliant ‘New India’ as envisioned by the Prime Minister, he said.
Shri Rajnath Singh praised Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi under whose leadership the economy of the country has become more dynamic and strong. He added that the number of start-ups in the country has increased manifold to 75,000 from just 400 in 2014. Of these, more than 100 are globally known as unicorns due to their $1 billion valuation, he said. Most countries today are facing the problem of economic slowdown. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has forecast global GDP growth to reach 2.9 percent in 2022-23. While India’s growth rate has been understated, it is still pegged at 6.1 percent. The world is looking up to India’s growth story,” Raksha Mantri said.
Read Now :Rare protest in China an overpass calling for a boycott and removal of Xi Jinping
