Hummingbird News Desk
NEW DELHI, 2 JULY: The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish three state-of-the-art testing facilities in Chennai under the Tamil Nadu Defence Industrial Corridor. The MoU was exchanged between senior officials of the MoD and Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation Limited in the presence of Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane.
These facilities, focusing on Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), Electronic Warfare (EW), and Electro Optics (EO), are part of the Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme (DTIS). The DTIS, launched by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in May 2020, aims to promote indigenous defence production, reduce military equipment imports, and enhance self-reliance in the defence sector.
The DTIS has an outlay of Rs 400 crore, with government funding up to 75% as ‘Grant-in-Aid’. The remaining 25% is funded by Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) comprising Indian private entities and State/Central Governments.
Keltron, a Kerala government undertaking, leads the SPV for the UAS testing facility, with consortium members from the private sector. Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and India Optel Limited (IOL) lead the SPVs for the EW and EO testing facilities, respectively.
The MoU signing marks a significant milestone for the Tamil Nadu Defence Industrial Corridor, which will house four of the seven approved DTIS testing facilities. The remaining three are planned for the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor.
Once completed, these facilities will provide advanced testing equipment and services to both government and private industry, significantly boosting India’s ‘Aatmanirbharta’ (self-reliance) in defence.
Tags: #MoD #UAS #ElectronicWarfare #ElectroOptics #TamilNadu
