President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday said the modernisation of the armed forces was essential for strong India and the Government is continuously focusing on reforms so that the forces maintain their supremacy during wars.
Addressing the first Joint Session of Parliament after the formation of the Narendra Modi-led third NDA government at the Centre, the President said, "Reforms in our armed forces should be a continuous process so that our forces maintain their supremacy during wars. Guided by this, my Government has introduced many reforms in the defence sector in the last 10 years".
She added that reforms like CDS have given new strength to the country's defence forces.
The President said the government has taken many important steps to make the defence sector self-reliant and this sector has greatly benefitted from the reforms in ordnance factories. More than 40 Ordnance factories have been restructured into seven Defence Sector Enterprises, resulting in improvement of their capacity and efficiency.
Moreover, due to such reforms India is now manufacturing defence equipment worth more than Rupees 1 lakh crore, she stressed.
Stressing on defence export, President Murmu said over the last decade, the country's defence exports have increased more than 18 times to the level of Rs 21,000 crore. And the BrahMos Missile defence deal with Philippines has strengthened India’s standing in the defence export sector.
She said the government was encouraging the youth and their startups so that a strong foundation is laid for a self-reliant defence sector.
She also highlighted the two defence corridors, in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Referring to the procurement of about 70 percent of defence items from Indian manufacturers, the President said the defence forces have decided not to import over 500 defence items.
The President said the government had always given priority to the needs of the personnel and the implementation of ‘One Rank One Pension’ after decades was the proof of it.
She also underscored the establishment of the National War Memorial at one end of Kartavya Path and said such efforts were not only salutations from a grateful nation for its brave soldiers but also a source of constant inspiration of the ideal of Nation First.
