<p>The union government, in line with its measures to accelerate growth in the country’s startup ecosystem, has created a new platform to engage investors in the defence sector – the iDEX Investors Hub (iIH).</p>.<p>Formed under the government’s iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) platform, the iIH has already seen more than Rs 200 crore pledged by leading Indian investors, an official statement said. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched the iIH on the sidelines of Aero India 2023, on Wednesday.</p>.<p>Under iIH, the government has entered MoUs with incubators and angel investors working across domains including engineering, IoT, machine language, and blockchain. The hub is aimed at identifying synergies among the investors and helping them scale up investment in the defence sector. The iIH also offers mentorship by investors and peer-to-peer learning, and opportunities to showcase technologies in national and international forums.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/city/nations-with-superior-military-powers-cant-dictate-solutions-to-others-rajnath-singh-1191115.html" target="_blank">Nations with superior military powers can't dictate solutions to others: Rajnath Singh</a></strong></p>.<p>The Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), a non-profit formed by the government, signed MoUs with leading investors at the startup manthan held as part of Aero India.</p>.<p>The Defence Minister also launched the ninth edition of the Defence India Startup Challenges (DISC 9) themed around cybersecurity, with 28 problem statements. DISC 9 is iDEX’s first collaboration with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (i4C) division of the Ministry of Home Affairs.</p>.<p><strong>Startups surging</strong></p>.<p>Speaking at the startup manthan, another iDEX initiative, Singh said iDEX helped the development of several home-grown technologies and showcased innovations. “Start-ups that have developed because of iDEX are also getting orders, which has fostered the start-up ecosystem in the country. iDEX has also given professionals the opportunity to understand futuristic technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality, and blockchain,” the Defence Minister said.</p>.<p>He underlined the growth of Indian start-ups across sectors, with the numbers increasing to approximately one lakh, including more than 100 unicorns.</p>.<p>The minister also released the Indian Army’s compendium of 110 problem statements for indigenous defence research, design, development and manufacturing ecosystem.</p>
<p>The union government, in line with its measures to accelerate growth in the country’s startup ecosystem, has created a new platform to engage investors in the defence sector – the iDEX Investors Hub (iIH).</p>.<p>Formed under the government’s iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) platform, the iIH has already seen more than Rs 200 crore pledged by leading Indian investors, an official statement said. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched the iIH on the sidelines of Aero India 2023, on Wednesday.</p>.<p>Under iIH, the government has entered MoUs with incubators and angel investors working across domains including engineering, IoT, machine language, and blockchain. The hub is aimed at identifying synergies among the investors and helping them scale up investment in the defence sector. The iIH also offers mentorship by investors and peer-to-peer learning, and opportunities to showcase technologies in national and international forums.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/city/nations-with-superior-military-powers-cant-dictate-solutions-to-others-rajnath-singh-1191115.html" target="_blank">Nations with superior military powers can't dictate solutions to others: Rajnath Singh</a></strong></p>.<p>The Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), a non-profit formed by the government, signed MoUs with leading investors at the startup manthan held as part of Aero India.</p>.<p>The Defence Minister also launched the ninth edition of the Defence India Startup Challenges (DISC 9) themed around cybersecurity, with 28 problem statements. DISC 9 is iDEX’s first collaboration with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (i4C) division of the Ministry of Home Affairs.</p>.<p><strong>Startups surging</strong></p>.<p>Speaking at the startup manthan, another iDEX initiative, Singh said iDEX helped the development of several home-grown technologies and showcased innovations. “Start-ups that have developed because of iDEX are also getting orders, which has fostered the start-up ecosystem in the country. iDEX has also given professionals the opportunity to understand futuristic technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality, and blockchain,” the Defence Minister said.</p>.<p>He underlined the growth of Indian start-ups across sectors, with the numbers increasing to approximately one lakh, including more than 100 unicorns.</p>.<p>The minister also released the Indian Army’s compendium of 110 problem statements for indigenous defence research, design, development and manufacturing ecosystem.</p>
