India moving from Make in India to make for the world: Rajnath Singh

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Three Sukhoi Su-30s at Aero India 2021 on February 3, 2021.

Five indigenously built aircraft - (from L to R) Hawk, HTT-40, Tejas, HTT-40 and the IJT - participate in HAL's Atmanirbhar Bharat flight at Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

Five indigenously built aircraft - (from L to R) Hawk, HTT-40, Tejas, HTT-40 and the IJT - participate in HAL’s Atmanirbhar Bharat flight at Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

Three HAL-made light combat helicopters (LCHs) fly during the inaugural day of the 13th edition of the air show in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

Advanced light helicopters of the famed Sarang aerobatic team carry out a criss-cross manoeuvre on Day One of the 13th edition of air show on Wednesday.

Hawks of the Surya Kiran aerobatics team perform during the Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

Surya Kirans and the Sarang display teams set the Bengaluru skies ablaze during the integrated display at Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

A combined air display of IAF’s aerobatic teams Sarang and Surya Kiran on the inaugural day of the air show.

ALHs of the Sarang Air Display team fly over the Yelahanka Air Force base during Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

Hawks of the Surya Kiran aerobatics team and ALHs of the Sarang Air display team prepare to carry out a combine maneuver at Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

A US Air Force B-1 Lancer of the 34th Expeditionary group flies over Yelahanka Air Force base, while escorted by a Tejas on the inaugural day of Aero India on Wednesday.

Two Sukhois flank a C-17 during a display at the air show.

A Dassault Rafale of the Indian Air Force takes-off at Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

Two Sukhois flank a C-17 during the airshow at Aero India 2021 on Wednesday.

A US Air Force B-1B Lancer of the 34th Expeditionary group, flanked by a Tejas, on display during the inaugural day of the Aero India 2021 in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh began Aero India 2021 with a proclamation that India is no longer in just “Make in India” mode but that it is ready to “make for the world.”

Speaking during the inauguration of the 13th edition of the air show on Wednesday, the defence minister said that India’s huge investment in the aerospace market had paid dividends in the form of major aircraft developments.

The crux of the show’s flypast which occurred shortly highlighted homegrown aircraft such as the Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), the Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), the Advanced Light helicopter and the LCA Tejas. This year’s Aero India revolves around the country’s indigenous rotary wing platforms, around the theme, “conceive, indigenize and collaborate.”

The selection of indigenous platforms which participated in the fly-past lent weight to Singh’s statement that the country’s defense manufacturing sector was on-par with the international arms market. International supplied rotor aircraft such as the Boeing Apache and Chinook were conspicuously absent at the air show.

“India has made huge investments in the aerospace market and as result, India is marching past “Make in India and is making for the world,” Rajnath said, adding later the homegrown industry has reached an inflection point. “The trajectory is upwards from now on,” he said.

The government has set a target to achieve a turnover of Rs 1,75,000 crore in the field of Defence manufacturing, including export of Rs 35,000 crore in Aerospace and Defence goods and services, by 2025, Rajnath said.

The Defence minister told international attendees that the government had instituted a series of policies to help the country sell its military hardware to foreign customers. Among the improvements cited by Singh were a series of defence policies. A new high-level committee authorised to enable faster approval of military exports and what the minister described as a significant jump in the ease of doing business.

“Our international standing in the ease of doing business is 63 out of 190 countries worldwide, which is significantly better than 2019 when we were at 77th place. Our aim is to make India one of the biggest members of the worldwide defense network” he said.

Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa pointed out that the state accounts for 65% of the country’s aerospace-related exports while 67% of all aircraft and helicopter for the armed forces are manufactured in the state. “Karnataka is also the first state in the country to come up with an aerospace policy. Our proposed investment is Rs 14,700 crore which has the capacity to employ 10,600 people,” he said.