Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to inaugurate the biennial Defence exhibition Defexpo-2020 being held in Lucknow next month from February 5-9. The event is being touted as the biggest defence exhibition in the country so far in terms of participation of various stakeholders.
The theme of the Expo is 'India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub'. The aim is to bring the leading technologies in the defence sector under one roof and provide a myriad of opportunities for the government, private manufacturers and start-ups.
The event will cover the entire spectrum of the country's aerospace, defence and security interests and would be attended by major defence manufacturing countries including the US, Russia, France, Germany and the United Kingdom.
The event is also being seen as a major push by the government towards building a huge military equipment manufacturing infrastructure in Uttar Pradesh which has one of the two designated defence industrial corridors.
The number of companies registered for participating in the 11th edition of the DefExpo 2020 has reached 1,000. In the DefExpo 2018, held in Chennai, 702 companies had participated.
The number of participating foreign companies has also increased to 165 from the previous figure of 160.
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The booked exhibition space by exhibitors for DefExpo 2020 has gone up by 60 per cent to over 42,800 square metres, compared to around 26,774 during the last edition.
Defence Ministers and Service Chiefs of 35 countries have confirmed their participation for the DefExpo. A substantial number of Memoranda of Undertaking (MoUs) are expected to be inked during the Expo, resulting in forging of new business collaborations.
The sub-theme of the exhibition is 'Digital Transformation of Defence' which aligns with the concept of the future battlefield. Manufacturing for the aerospace and defence sector through the application of newer technologies will also be focused upon.
In addition to exhibiting products and technologies and live demonstrations by the Services, Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) and industry will showcase the land, naval, air and internal security systems.
The 'India Pavilion' will exclusively showcase the jointness between the public and private sector, including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)/Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and innovation eco-system, which is the key to the way forward.
There will be a sizeable Uttar Pradesh Pavilion at the DefExpo venue. Apart from displaying industrial prowess and huge potential for the investors, the UP government will organise several cultural programmes showcasing rich cultural heritage of the state. A unique experience for the visitors is planned at the Tent City, which is being especially erected at the venue.
The Central government has set up Defence Industrial Corridor in Uttar Pradesh with identification of six nodes. A Defence Planning Committee has also been formed. In this regard, the Government of UP has planned to build a defence manufacturing corridor along with the proposed Bundelkhand Expressway which will help in making India self-reliant in the field of defence production. The DefExpo will play the role of a catalyst in attracting not only investments but also cutting-edge technologies to the region.
The DefExpo 2020 is expected to see participation from over 70 countries and will be in line with the biggest of the international defence exhibitions.
Since 2016, the Defexpo has been changing venues after the then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar decided to shift it to Goa from Delhi. The event was held in Chennai when Nirmala Sitharaman was the Defence Minister and now it has been shifted to Lucknow.
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