PM Modi appreciates various BJP Morchas for their paramount role in connecting directly with people and furthering the party’s reach
Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya’s Antyodaya is the BJP guiding principle: PM Modi
Congress humiliated Dr. Ambedkar; they did not even confer Bharat Ratna on him: PM Modi
In 2015, NDA Government strengthened the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act: PM Modi
Congress involved in vote-bank politics, they did not let OBC Commission get Constitutional status: PM Modi
In his interaction with the SC/ST, OBC, Minority and Slum Morcha of the Karnataka BJP through the ‘Narendra Modi Mobile App’, the Prime Minister said that they had a paramount role in connecting directly with people and furthering the party’s reach. Noting that the BJP had the maximum number of MPs from the SC, ST, OBC and minorities communities, he appreciated them for their efforts.
Stating that the BJP’s guiding principle was that of Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya’s Antyodaya, he urged the members to further the reach of the party’s initiatives among the weaker sections. Remembering Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar, Shri Modi remarked that welfare of each and every community was the BJP’s commitment.
Shri Modi also highlighted Jyotiba Phule’s contribution to fight social injustice with two weapons- education sand women empowerment. Referring to Kabir Das and Ravidas, he said that their efforts to fight social injustice were inspirational and continues to show us the way.
Prime Minister Modi attacked the Congress for humiliating Dr. Ambedkar stating that until they were in power, they did not even confer Bharat Ratna to Dr. Ambedkar. Prime Minister Modi also stated that the BJP was working on developing Panchteerth of Baba Saheb Ambedkar. “Taking inspiration from all the great saints, today we are trying to fulfill Baba Saheb's dream of powerful and prosperous nation”, he remarked.
PM Modi also took questions from the SC/ST, OBC and Slum Morcha and spoke at length about several welfare measures being undertaken to uplift them.
Highlighting several initiatives being undertaken by the BJP-led NDA Government at Centre, Shri Modi said that in 2015 the Government strengthened the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and increased the offences listed in the Act from 22 to 47 to empower the weaker sections. He said that Stand up and Mudra Yojanas were helping to make SC/ST, OBC and women financially empowered.
Attacking the Congress for not letting the OBC Commission a Constitutional Status in Parliament, he said that they were only involved in vote-bank politics and never cared about empowering the weaker sections.
Shri Modi also spoke about how India was rapidly growing. He mentioned that under the NDA Government, India was the second largest steel manufacturer in the world, second largest mobile phone manufacturer and fourth largest automobile manufacturer. He also noted several initiatives being undertaken by the Centre like Smart Cities, Amrut and connecting the waterways.
Self-reliance in Defence for a Self-reliant New India
May 29, 2023
பகிர்ந்து
The 21-gun salute made on the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence by an artillery gun manufactured in India, marked the beginning of a new era in Aatmanibharta. Self-sufficiency of the Defence forces remains paramount for strategic Independence considering India’s geographical location. The indigenisation of the Defence forces would help not just reduce dependency on others, but also helped in creating opportunities for innovation, and propel the defence industry of India to export globally as well. In the last nine years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been setting up a path by bringing in reforms and removing hurdles which prevented the Armed Forces from equipping themselves. The Defence forces now have equipped themselves with highly innovative Made in India defence equipment.
Setting up the Make in India industry
India had predominantly remained an importer of defence equipment till recently. PM Modi’s clarion call to become ‘Aatmanibhar Bharat’ was the foundation stone for India’s journey towards self-sufficiency. Though India’s manufacturing prowess and innovation were at a high, still there were several hurdles impeding the growth of this industry. As a first step, the liberalisation of Foreign Direct investment was raised from 49% to 74% which would attract investors to invest in India to maximise utilisation of India’s Defence manufacturing industry and would also allow them to transfer the latest technology in manufacturing as well. This step taken by the government has led to an increase in investment in the last nine years.
The Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) was reformed in 2016, which facilitated in emphasising on pushing the defence manufacturing sector towards self-reliance through the encouragement of indigenously designed, developed and manufactured weapon systems. The reworking of the Ordnance Factory Board into 7 new Defence companies has resulted in the companies making huge profits.
The Government too had taken steps to reduce dependency on the purchase of arms and equipment. The expenditure of the government towards the modernisation of defence forces has also seen a steep increase. This has resulted in the manufacturing industry being at par with the speed with the world in terms of innovation and modern manufacturing technology. This also had a positive impact on creation of new jobs and opportunities. The Positive Indigenisation List was another initiative taken by the government in ensuring that a calculated approach is adopted. Currently, 2,500 items are already indigenised which has resulted in Rs 1,756 crore as import substitution value. The commissioning of INS VIKRANT India’s first indigenously built aircraft stands as a pinnacle of India’s manufacturing prowess, a moment of pride for our Defence Services and our indigenous manufacturing industries.
Promoting India’s Innovation
The government has launched the Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) to foster innovation and technology development in the defence and aerospace sector, by establishing incubation and infrastructure support to startup enterprises in the sector. iDEX promotes self-reliance as envisioned in Aatmanirbhar Bharat by engaging with stakeholders from industries including MSMEs, start-ups, individual innovators, R&D institutes and academia.
The government had launched SRIJAN portal as a one stop online portal that provides access to the vendors to take up items that can be taken up for indigenization. More than 29,000 defence items have been uploaded on the portal and offered to the industry for indigenisation. Over 7,000 defence items have been indigenised, which cater to the domestic and global markets.
The government is setting up new Defence Industrial Corridors which has been a game changer. This would help in setting up new industries as well as creating new job opportunities for the youth. A technology Development Fund (TDF) scheme has been launched to provide financial support and expertise to upgrade existing products/ systems, and processes. Till date, a total of 68 projects at a total cost of Rs 287.4 crore have been sanctioned under TDF Scheme. Trust in Make in India – Defence
The persistent efforts taken by the Modi-led government in the last 9 years have ushered in a new era of Defence exports. A tenfold increase has been recorded since 2016-17. The Defence export has reached Rs 15,920 crore FY 2022-23. India is now exporting defence equipment to over 85 nations. Defence procurement from foreign sources has reduced from 46% of overall expenditure in 2018-19 to 36.7% in 2022.
The trajectory of growth in both indigenous defence industries and exports has risen exponentially. Those days where defence lobbyists would advocate a particular country or equipment are over. The progressive reforms coupled with India’s innovative thinking have resulted in growth. India today has shifted from an import-dependent to becoming one of the major exporters. The trust shown by the world is a testament to the path adopted by PM Modi.
