PM Modi inaugurates DefExpo 2018

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 10th edition of defence Expo 2018 in Chennai. The four-day long defence expo would aim to highlight India as an emerging manufacturing power. The exhibition holds great importance as India would showcase her defence power, besides 47 nations are also participating in the event that began on Aprill 11 and would be continued till April 14.

Below we have listed out the 10 major things from the inauguration speech of Prime Minister Narendra Modi which you should know about.

1. The Prime Minister began his address with thanking the people of Tamil nadu. He said that he was delighted to see an enthusiastic gathering in this historic region of Kanchipuram, "I am very happy to be here in the land of the great Cholas who established India's historical civilization links through trade and education", he further added.

2. The Prime Minister said that it has been wonderful to see that over 500 Indian companies and around 150 foreign companies have participated in Defence expo 2018.

"More than 40 countries have sent their official delegations as well", the Prime Minister said.

3. PM Modi empasised that the BJP led government is committed to protect the country's territory. "Our commitment to peace is just as strong as our commitment to protecting our people and our territory. For this we are ready to take all necessary measures to equip our Armed Forces, including through the establishment of a strategically independent defence industrial complex".

4. Listing out the ease of doing business in the manufacturing sector, he said, "We are conscious that defence manufacturing is unique in terms of govt. involvement. You need the govt. to grant a license to manufacture. Since the govt. is almost the only buyer, you need the govt. to grant an order. You need the government even to grant permission to export".

5. The Prime Minister said that the government has in recent years took many steps in the field of defence manufacturing licenses, defence offsets, defence exports clearances and on Foreign Direct Investment in defence manufacturing along with reforming India's defence procurement.

6. "The Defence Procurement Procedure has been revised with many specific provisions for stimulating growth of domestic defence industry. We have also de-notified some items earlier made exclusively by Ordnance Factories, so that private sector, esp. MSMEs can enter this space" PM Modi said.

7. In May 2014, the total number of defence export permission granted stood at 118, for a total value of 577 million dollars. In less than four years, we have issued 794 more export permissions, for a total value of over 1.3 billion dollars, Prime Minister Modi informed.

8. “We are committed to establishing 2 Defence Industrial Corridors: 1 in TN & 1 in UP. These will utilize defence manufacturing ecosystems in the regions & further build upon it. The corridors will become engines of economic development and growth of defence industrial base”, PM said.

9. “There was a time when the critical issue of defence preparedness was hampered by policy paralysis. We have seen the damage such laziness, incompetence or perhaps some hidden motives, can cause to the nation.Not now, Not anymore, Never again”, he said in his address.

10. “We have not only taken bold action to meet our immediate critical requirements, but have also initiated a new process to procure 110 fighter aircrafts”, PM Modi informed in his speech.