Showcasing the growth in the state in the defence sector, Gujarat government today announced that a defence equipment manufacturing unit is set to come up in South Gujarat.
According to Arvind Agarwal, vice chairman and managing director of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), Government of Gujarat, the defence equipment manufacturing unit will be set up at an investment of Rs 600 crore. "Due to security reasons, I will not be able to reveal the name of the company. However, there is lot of development taking place in Gujarat in the defence sector," said Agarwal.
Apart from a company setting up a defence equipment manufacturing unit in South Gujarat, two large defence equipment manufacturing companies are venturing into submarine and surveillance ships for Navy. The manufacturing unit for these will be set up in Gujarat.
Speaking at a seminar on 'Emerging Opportunities in the Defence Sector', Agarwal said, "Gujarat being an investor friendly state has found defence as a different sector for investments. The government of India has received 12,000 IEMs for this sector out of which Rs 8 lakh crore of investments will be in Gujarat. The government shall provide huge opportunities for the small, medium and large scale manufacturers with the right type of facilities for manufacturing precision parts and equipment to become key players in India’s defence requirements."
The seminar also focused on how Gujarat can have an opportunity to make a hub for offsets and joint ventures (JVs) in defence manufacturing and production.
"Offsets are counter-trade obligations imposed by an importing country, in this case India, upon the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) that mandate the transfer of critical technologies and production of components. India obligates that offset related investments be strictly limited to defence. The foreign supplier has to invest back or purchase from India 30 per cent of the value of the deal currently," said colonel S S Dahiya, PO (CAP), Ministry of Defence, Government of India.