INS Beas visits Doha, Qatar for International Maritime Defence Exhibition (DIMDEX)

Indian Naval ship Beas is on an official visit to Doha, Qatar from today onwards till 02 Apr 16 to participate in the fifth edition of Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition (DIMDEX).

DIMDEX is held biennially at Doha and provides an ideal platform for showcasing our indigenous shipbuilding capability and technological prowess as well as innovation in Naval systems. INS Beas, an indigenous Brahmaputra Class frigate commissioned on 11 Jul 05 will represent the Indian Navy at DIMDEX 16. Built by our Defence shipyard (DPSU), M/s Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited, at Kolkata, the ship is a modern anti-submarine warfare frigate equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors. The ship represents a unique amalgamation of Western and Eastern origin as well as indigenous equipment and leverages innovation to provide a potent mix of surface, anti-air and anti-missile as well as anti-submarine capabilities.

During the visit, the ship will have professional interactions with the Qatar Emiri Navy. The visit will also afford an opportunity to interact with other participating warships from various countries. These interactions will contribute towards strengthening ties, enhancing mutual understanding and building ‘Bridges of Friendship’. The ship is Commanded by Captain Deepak Bhatia, who is a Navigation and Operations specialist.

The Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command, Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba, PVSM, AVSM, ADC, will also visit Doha during the period of the ship’s stay. During the visit, the Flag Officer will also address the Middle East Naval Commanders’ Conference (MENC).

The visit by INS Beas to Doha for DIMDEX 16 will serve to showcase Indian indigenous shipbuilding capability and maritime prowess, enhance maritime ties with Qatar as well as other participating countries.

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BEL Hands Over EOIR Payload to IAF

Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Bengaluru handed over the first lot of 2 Nos of Electro Optic Infra Red (EOIR) payloads for Helicopters to the Indian Air Force (IAF) in Chennai on March 21, 2016. Air Vice MarshalA S Butola, Asst Chief of Air Staff, Operations (Transport & Helicopters), received the EOIR payloads on behalf of the IAF from Mr Amol Newaskar, Director (Other Units), BEL, in the presence of Mr Charan Singh, GM (BEL-Chennai), at a function held at BEL’s Chennai Unit.

The EOIR payload being manufactured by BEL-Chennai is a Stabilized Turret Assembly consisting of Day & Night Camera with eye-safe Laser Range Finder which provides capabilities for day / night target detection, recognition and identification and range measurement in various weather conditions. It is a compact and low-weight system.

BEL has established facilities in collaboration with M/s ELOP, Israel, for manufacture of EOIR payload at its Chennai, Pune and Machilipatnam plants. Post Transfer of Technology (ToT) absorption, BEL commenced commercial production of EOIR payload for the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) program in November 2014.

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Defence Minister inaugurates Defexpo-2016 at Goa

The 9th edition of Defexpo India, a biennial exhibition on Land, Naval and Internal Homeland Security Systems was inaugurated today by the Defence Minister, Shri Manohar Parrikar at Naqueri Quitol, Quepem Taluka, South Goa, Goa. The four-day event is being organised by the Defence Exhibition Organisation of Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence.

At the outset Shri Parrikar announced that the Defence Procurement Procedure-2016 (DPP-2016) has been uploaded on the website of Ministry of Defence, commenting that it will provide a push to the ‘Make in India’ campaign. He said the Government has been proactive in its ‘Make in India’ initiative and desires to also include ‘Startup India’ which will find opportunities in Defence sector. The Defence Minister stated that the Government has tweaked the policies to address the concerns of defence manufacturers and suppliers and enhanced transparency. The new procurement policy being promulgated by DPP-2016 will ensure faster pace in procurement especially through newly introduced categories under Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured (IDDM) provisions. Such provisions will encourage Indian Industry in Defence Sector, he added. He acknowledged the contributions of the Small and Medium Scale Industries in Defence Sector, quoting that many innovative ideas have come from these sectors. He further added that, while Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Defence Sector is capped at 49%, cases for higher FDI can be considered on case to case basis. He commended the organisers and the delegates present for the overwhelming response to Defexpo 2016 with record participation of companies in the event.

Speaking on the occasion Shri Laxmikant Parsekar, the Chief Minister of Goa, welcomed the delegates from all over the world to the State of Goa. He said that Goa is an industrially advanced state in the country, and there are many steps taken by the Government to enhance the ease of business within the state. These steps include Investment Promotion Board which provides a single window for obtaining all clearances required for setting up new industries. He hoped that an exhibition of this scale should give adequate stimulus to the local economy.

The Minister of State for Defence, Rao Inderjit Singh, who also spoke on the occasion, said that over the last 70 years India has created a robust industrial base and the aim of the government is to transform India from being a net importer to a net exporter of defence equipment through its ‘Make in India’ campaign.

The inaugural ceremony saw live demonstrations of military equipment including Main Battle Tank Arjun Mk I and II, various types of heavy bridging equipment, Wheeled Armoured Vehicle, Sarang Aerobatic team and Naval LCA. MBT Arjun Mk II and Wheeled Armoured Vehicle were being displayed for the first time in any exhibition.

The function was also attended by the Union Minister for Railways Shri Suresh Prabhu, Union Minister of State for AYUSH Shri Shripad Naik, MP from South Goa Shri Narendra Keshav Sawaikar, Chief of the Army Staff General Dalbir Singh, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral RK Dhowan, Defence Secretary Shri G Mohan Kumar, Secretary (Defence Production) Shri AK Gupta and Senior Officials from the three Services and Ministry of Defence, Government of Goa as well as from the participating countries.

47 countries from different continents are taking part in the exhibition against 30 countries which participated in Defexpo 2014. In comparison to Defexpo 2014 where 624 companies participated; over 1000 companies, both foreign and Indian, are taking part this year. The net exhibition area sold during this edition is 40,725 square meters against 27,515 Square Meters in 2014.

On the sidelines of the exhibition, Seminars will provide a platform to showcase developments and opportunities in the defence sector. The topics of the Seminars being conducted on 29 and 30 March 2016 are Global Defence Supply Chain, advances in shipbuilding technology, Make in India for defence sector, India – Korea Defence Cooperation, Modernisation Programme of Indian Army and Challenges and opportunities of Defence Offset.

The event will be open to public on 31 March 2016 and by prior registration on other days. People who wish to visit the site on other days may do so by registering on the website www.defexpoindia.in.