PIB News Update: Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Ajay Bhatt informed that In line with Government of India’s initiative of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, it has been decided to earmark an amount of Rs 71,438.36 crore for domestic capital procurement out of the total allocation of Rs 1,11,463.21 crore for Capital Acquisition.
Capital procurement of defence equipment are undertaken from various domestic as well as foreign vendors, based on threat perception, operational challenges and technological changes and to keep the Armed Forces in a state of readiness. During last three financial years i.e. 2018-19 to 2020-21, 102 contracts have been signed with Indian vendors for capital procurement of defence equipment such as aircrafts, missiles, tanks, bullet proof jackets, guns, navy vessels, radars, networks etc.
In order to provide impetus to self-reliance in defence manufacturing as part of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative, two Positive Indigenization Lists have been promulgated. The first Positive Indigenization List was promulgated in August 2020, which included 101 items, and second list was promulgated in May 2021, which included 108 items. The lists intend to implement the ban in a staggered manner up to December 2025. The aim behind promulgation of the lists is to apprise the Indian Defence Industry about the anticipated requirements of the armed forces, so that they are better prepared to realize the goal of indigenization. It provides a great opportunity for the Indian Defence Industry to manufacture the items in the list by using their own design and development capabilities or adopting those developed by the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO), to meet the requirements of the armed forces in the coming years.