Wars have become ‘very complex’ due to new dimensions, says Rajnath Singh

Nagpur: Wars have become very complex and are not limited to borders but even energy, trade, tariff, supply chains, technology and information are now part of its new dimensions, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said here on Sunday.

Addressing a gathering at the inaugural ceremony of a medium calibre ammunition facility at Solar Defence and Aerospace Limited here, he said there was a time when defence production was limited to the public sector and nobody ever though of private sector participation.

On the occasion, Singh flagged off the first tranche of guided Pinaka rockets manufactured by Solar group to Armenia.

The private sector had the capacity and potential but its participation was not at the scale it should have been, he said.

There were challenges and doubts regarding private sector defence production while the country took steps towards ‘atmanirbharta’, but the present government opened up the sector by introducing changes in policies and simplifying the processes as it had full faith in their potential, Singh said.

“It is also resulting in good quality, better timelines as well as improvement in productivity and delivery. Our defence ecosystem has improved a lot. The way scientific temperament and technology driven approach has developed in the private defence sector is very laudable,” he said.

The private sector is now ahead of the public sector with regards to research and development, the Union minister pointed out.

India is moving fast towards becoming a major arms exporter, Singh asserted.

Shortage in ammunition supply was felt but the government has brought in self-reliance in the sector, he said while lauding Solar group for its various defence production capacities like Pinaka missiles as well as Nagastra drone used in Operation Sindoor.

The government’s ambition is that India should become the global hub of ammunition production, Singh added.