48 private sector defence projects approved

The Home Ministry has reportedly given security clearances to 48 private sector companies investing in the defence sector, which clearance follows ‘stream lining’ of the security clearance mechanism from May 2015. The government expects the domestic private share in defence budget to go up by 20% in four years from the present 5% after liberalising the FDI regime and ‘Make in India’ initiative. According to a senior official, the MHA has cleared around 1,200 applications annually over the last few years to promote ‘Make in India’. The ministry also cleared foreign investments from the US, UK, Israel, Belgium, China and Japan.