The Indian Navy is set to host the 2nd Edition of the Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Seminar, ‘Swavlamban 2023,’ on October 4-5, 2023. This event follows the success of the inaugural seminar in July 2022 when the Hon’ble Prime Minister unveiled the ‘SPRINT Challenges,’ consisting of 75 challenges for start-ups and MSMEs. These challenges were designed to promote the use of indigenous technology in the Indian Navy.
SPRINT, short for ‘Supporting Pole-Vaulting in R&D through Innovations for Defence Excellence,’ is a collaborative initiative involving the Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), NIIO, and TDAC. The response to this initiative has been exceptional, with 1,106 proposals received. Following a thorough evaluation, 113 winners under the DISC 7 SPRINT category (with grants up to 1.5 crore) and 5 winners in the DISC 7 SPRINT-PRIME category (grants up to 10 crore) have been declared. These winners are actively progressing the development of prototypes, and more than 100 developmental agreements have been concluded between iDEX and industry, with active engagement from the Indian Navy, iDEX, and start-ups/MSMEs.
The prototypes encompass various niche technologies, including blue-green lasers for underwater applications, autonomous weaponized swarms, underwater swarm drones, firefighting aids, artificial intelligence applications, and an ultra-endurance small drone designed for maritime missions.
These 75 prototypes, including live demonstrations of select technologies, will be showcased during ‘Swavlamban-2023,’ scheduled for October 4-5, 2023, in New Delhi. This event represents a significant step towards enhancing indigenous innovation and indigenisation in the Indian Navy.