NEW DELHI: In a move to boost national defense manufacturing, the government on Wednesday approved the export of the locally developed Akash surface-to-air missile system and established a panel to ensure faster approvals for procurement proposals from various countries.
Akash missile systems have more than 96% indigenous components and the weapon can hit targets at a distance of 25 km. Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said the export version of the Akash missiles would be different from the system currently deployed with the Indian armed forces.
The decision to export the missile systems was made at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Modi. “Under #AtmaNirbharBharat, India is growing in its capacity to manufacture a wide variety of missile and defense platforms. The cabinet chaired by Prime Minister @narendramodi ji today approved the export of the Akash missile system and a committee has been created to faster approvals. ” Singh tweeted.
He said that India’s defense exports so far included parts and components. “The export of large platforms was minimal. This Cabinet decision would help the country improve its defense products and make them competitive globally,” said the minister.
Singh said the government intends to focus on exporting high-value defense platforms with the goal of achieving a goal of $ 5 billion in defense exports and enhancing strategic ties with friendly countries. The government has mainly focused on boosting national defense production and set a turnover target of more than Rs 1.7 crore in defense manufacturing by 2025.
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