The third edition of Acing Development of Innovative Technologies with iDEX (ADITI 3.0) challenge and 13th edition of Defence India Start-up Challenges (DISC 13) were unveiled by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh during Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation (NIIO) seminar ‘Swavlamban’ at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi on October 29, 2024. These challenges aim to advance indigenous defence technologies and operational efficiencies.

The ADITI 3.0 features a challenge from the Indian Navy to design a High-Power Microwave Weapon System. The DISC 13 presents seven challenges – three from Indian Army and two each from Indian Navy & Indian Air Force – in the domains of Artificial Intelligence, military communication and autonomous bots among others.

Raksha Mantri also felicitated iDEX winners and Hackathon awardees on the occasion. In his address, he stated that in the last two sessions of ‘Swavlamban’, Indian Navy has received over 2,000 proposals from Indian industries under the SPRINT challenges, which were unveiled by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi during Swavlamban 1.0 in July 2022. SPRINT stands for Supporting Pole-Vaulting in R&D through iDEX, Naval Innovation & Indigenisation Organisation and Technology Development Acceleration Cell.

Shri Rajnath Singh said that these proposals have been converted into 155 challenges, which will help in completing 171 contracts. In addition, the Swavalamban initiative has collaborated with 213 MSMEs and start-ups under iDEX. Till now, Acceptance of Necessity of more than Rs 2,000 crore has been given in 19 cases, of which contracts worth up to Rs 784 crore have been completed.

Raksha Mantri congratulated the winners for their innovative solutions to the challenges given by the Armed Forces, terming their feats as extraordinary. He exhorted them to think ahead and come out with products, which are not immediately needed, but can become a necessity for the Armed Forces after they are actually developed.

Citing the success of digital transactions, Shri Rajnath Singh stated that today India has emerged as the world’s largest country in terms of the value of digital payments. He also spoke of the Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and Mobile Trinity, which has made the delivery of government schemes easy and transparent. “You don't wait for the right time, you bring the right time. You’re fully capable. You must come up with new ideas through innovation,” he said, assuring all possible help of the Government in this endeavour.

Raksha Mantri highlighted the self-reliance efforts being made by the Government, led by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, stating that the changes brought about in the last few years have created an innovative culture in India, keeping national security in mind. “There was a time when we had become so dependent on imports for arms and equipment that innovative ideas could never take birth. Even if there were ideas, there was no system to execute them. It is a result of our Prime Minister's farsightedness that the situation has improved rapidly in the last few years. Today, we also have a concrete ecosystem, and we are moving rapidly towards self-reliance,” he said. He described the Indian Navy as an Innovative Navy, commending its efforts towards achieving self-reliance.

Acknowledging the vital contribution of both public & private sectors in realising the vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, Shri Rajnath Singh reasserted the Government’s commitment to march ahead on the road to progress by taking all the stakeholders together. “Our public sector was already involved in the defence sector. But, when we came to power, we realised that a bird fly cannot fly with one wing, and there is a need to strengthen the other wing as well. We are making efforts to increase the participation of the private sector in the defence industrial ecosystem. Our DPSUs are moving rapidly towards achieving the goal of self-reliance. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited recently achieved the status of ‘Maharatna’ by increasing its capacity. I am quite satisfied with the performance of our DPSUs. I appeal to our DPSUs and the private sector to continuously achieve new heights on the strength of ‘Continuous Innovation’,” he said.

Raksha Mantri added that the Government’s concerted efforts have not only reduced import dependency & ensured public and private sectors to work together for ‘Aatmanirbharta in defence, it has also resulted in the emergence of science, technology, innovation & self-reliance as a revolutionary idea throughout the country. He was of the view that the idea of innovation & self-reliance has blossomed, and the Government’s efforts have awakened this consciousness among the youth.

Shri Rajnath Singh credited the innovation in the youth for the rise in the number of start-ups in the country, which has crossed over one lakh - more than 100 being unicorns. “Start-ups are playing a big role in defence manufacturing. Our youth have realised that they can make the country self-reliant through innovation,” he said.

Speaking on the occasion, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi reiterated the Indian Navy’s commitment to safeguard national maritime interests, adding that to facilitate this journey, a solemn resolve has been made to become a ‘Fully Aatmanirbhar Force’ by 2047. He mentioned that through collaborative efforts of Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO) and NIIO, 173 challenges presented to the Industry by the Navy, including all the 75 challenges launched by the Prime Minister as part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahostsav’ have been converted into pragmatic solutions and positive outcomes.

“The overwhelming success of our previous two editions has inspired us to expand the scope and scale of this year’s edition through the launch of new transformational technology challenges and a Hackathon. This landmark edition is also witnessing the largest ever participation of delegates from across our defence sector, including counterparts from the Army, Air Force and Coast Guard as well as Central Armed Police Forces, Defence PSUs and DRDO,” the Chief of the Naval Staff said.

On the occasion, Raksha Mantri witnessed the innovation and futuristic technologies developed by the iDEX winners and innovators. Another highlight was the Flag-off of the ‘Sagarmala Parikrama’ to conduct an autonomous passage of about 1,500 kms from Mumbai to Tuticorin. Towards adding streamlined focus in developing manufacturing capability for niche products like semiconductors, an MoU was exchanged between Bharat Electronics Limited, 3rdiTech and Bharat Semiconductors.

Chief of the Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, Defence Secretary-designate Shri RK Singh, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D, Chairman DRDO Dr Samir V Kamat, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff Lt Gen JP Mathew, other senior civil & military officials of Ministry of Defence, President, Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers Shri Rajinder Singh Bhatia, industry leaders and academia were present on the occasion.

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VK/SR/VM/Savvy