Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said critical, cutting edge and frontier technologies have been adding new dimensions of lethality as well as unpredictability in modern warfare. He also said, “If we want to remain strong and secure in adverse situations, we need youth trained in these technologies, who can provide solution to the critical technological challenges”.
Speaking at National Science Day celebrations, ‘Vigyan Vaibhav – 2025’, organized by DRDO and others here, he said the changing formats of warfare in the recent years have an increasingly higher technological component as compared to the past.
War is increasingly moving from hardware-oriented to software, he said.
“If you want to remain strong and secure in adverse situations, we need youth trained in these technologies who can provide solutions to the critical technological challenges,” he said.
From this point of view, education in modern science and technology is even more important for the safety and security of the nation, Singh said.
Addressing the audience, largely comprising school and college students, he urged the younger generation to adopt scientific outlook and critical thinking to delve into the questions of “how and why” and go beyond ordinary.
Each of the youngsters has a spark of brilliance and capacity to move the world. “It is only a question of recognising it and committing yourself to achieve it,” Singh said.
The Central Government, under the illustrious leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is fully committed to harness modern technology for the welfare of the people, he said.
As education is in the concurrent list of the Constitution, it is the joint responsibility of the Centre and states to ensure that future generation get the best of education and that the generations ahead are not only future ready but also globally ready, he said.
The New Education Policy (NEP) has endeavoured to change the nature of our education system by introducing dynamic elements like field work, practicals and research, Rajnath Singh said.
This is the line with which Swami Vivekananda had said: the very essence of education is the concentration of mind, not of collecting facts, he further added.
“I am also aware that education is a concurrent subject under the Indian Constitution. It is the joint responsibility of the Centre and states to ensure that our future generation gets the best of education, that no child is left without good education and that the generations ahead are not only future ready but also globally ready,” he said.
Bringing up our young generation as future ready and globally ready must be a joint effort, a national effort and nothing less than that, he said.
Singh further said the National Science Day is one such occasion which not only commemorates the achievements of the scientists but also encourages the younger generations to take up science and innovation for national development.
Recalling the significant contributions of ancient Indian scholars like Aryabhatta and Bhaskaracharya, he said when India prospered in science, its economy also prospered.
“But, as the destiny had it, India at the time of Independence, was both capital scarce and technology scarce. It was also poor in skilled human resources,” he said.
He further said India was a slow growth economy after independence and under the circumstances it was understood that science was the way forward to improve the economic development, essential for a self generating economy and industry as well as agriculture, he said.
Application of science led to self-sufficiency in agricultural production in India, Singh noted.
Speaking on the occasion, Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy said Hyderabad and Bengaluru are important centers for the country’s defence sector and Hyderabad- Bengaluru should be declared as a Defence Industrial Corridor.
“The corridor will bring in huge investments. Your (Rajnath Singh) cooperation and support are required. We will make efforts to promote India as number one country in the defence sector,” Reddy said.
As part of the event, a grand exhibition was organised which saw participation of over 30,000 students, a defence release said.
Featuring 200 plus exhibition stalls, it provided a rare opportunity for students to witness cutting-edge defence and aerospace technologies developed by DRDO and leading Indian industries.
Meanwhile, Rajnath Singh visited DRDO’s Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, the nerve centre for design and development of indigenous missile systems, in Hyderabad, another release said.
He was briefed on the missile technologies and related programmes being carried out by Research Centre Imarat (RCI). Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO Samir V Kamat and senior scientists and officials of RCI were present.
Singh also felicitated the team of the Long-Range Hypersonic Anti-Ship Missile project, successful flight-trials of which took place in November 2024, it said.
Interacting with the scientists, Singh commended them for their unparalleled contribution to India’s defence capabilities and exuded confidence that with concerted efforts India will find itself among the top three economies by 2027.
He called upon them to continue factoring in the rapidly-evolving technological transformation into their projects while working with dedication and honesty, the release said.
