19-Aug-2021: Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launches Defence India Startup Challenge 5.0

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC) 5.0 under Innovations for Defence Excellence - Defence Innovation Organisation (iDEX-DIO) through video conferencing on August 19, 2021. Thirty five Problem Statements – 13 from the Services and 22 from Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) – were unveiled under DISC 5.0. These are in areas such as Situational awareness, Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, Aircraft-trainer, Non-lethal devices, 5G network, Under-water domain awareness, Drone SWARMS and Data Capturing. The Problem Statements, designed to ensure military advantage in the foreseeable future, are the highest in any edition, so far.

Lauding the efforts of iDEX-DIO, Shri Rajnath Singh, in his address, termed DISC 5.0 as another step towards independence in the defence sector as the launch comes at a time when the country is celebrating ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. Stating that DISC 5.0 is a reflection of Government’s resolve of creating an ‘AatmaNirbhar’ defence sector, he exuded confidence that this challenge will move forward from its earlier editions and take innovation, design & development to newer heights. He shed light on the previous four editions of DISC and said that more than 80 startups, MSMEs and individual innovators have joined as winners in over 40 technological areas. He added that modern and futuristic problem statements launched in DISC 5.0 demonstrate the confidence of young entrepreneurs and innovators in DISC.

The Raksha Mantri underlined the importance of creating a strong, modern & well-equipped military and an equally capable & self-reliant defence industry, given the rapidly changing geo-political and security scenario in the world. To realise this vision, he said, iDEX is playing a crucial role by providing a platform wherein the Government, Services, think tanks, industry, startups and innovators can work together to help the defence & aerospace sectors reach full potential.

“Defence India Startup Challenge and Open Challenges provide many opportunities to our youth and entrepreneurs. They give a new direction to defence innovation and capabilities by highlighting the potential of India's science, technology and research”, said Shri Rajnath Singh. He added that iDEX4fauji is a similar initiative that gives an opportunity to the service personnel to showcase their talent in these fields.

Sharing his insights on the broad contours of iDEX, the Raksha Mantri stated that the initiative has succeeded in bridging the gap between talent and demand in the country. “iDEX provides a strong foundation of innovation, R&D to the industry. Initiatives like iDEX form a link between our youth, academia, R&D, start-ups and the Armed Forces,” he added.

Shri Rajnath Singh listed out measures taken by Ministry of Defence to promote innovation, such as including iDEX as a procurement avenue under Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP-2020); earmarking Rs 1,000 crore for domestic procurement through iDEX for financial year 2021-2022 and approving a budget of Rs 498.8 crore for the next five years to support over 300 startups and foster innovation in defence & aerospace sectors.

The Raksha Mantri expressed confidence that iDEX will support five times more start-ups over the next five years as the aim is to accelerate progress, reduce costs and complete procurement in a time bound manner. For this, he said, there is need to adopt the concept of 5 Is (Identify, Incubate, Innovate, Integrate and Indigenise).

Shri Rajnath Singh also referred to a number of initiatives taken by the Government, including steps to increase partnerships with the private sector, technology transfers and restrictions on import of more than 200 items, to promote self-reliance as well as generate employment opportunities. Commending various stakeholders for indigenously developing world-class technologies, he called for identifying and developing new technologies to take forward the vision of ‘Make in India – Make for the World’. He called upon the private sector to come forward and contribute towards building a self-reliant defence sector and assured all possible support of the government.

In his welcome address, Secretary (Defence Production) Shri Raj Kumar termed innovation and self-reliance as the two aspects of iDEX. He said India has the third largest startup ecosystem in the world and these startups are not just wealth creators but employment generators. He added that today the nature of warfare is technology-driven and these startups can play a crucial role in developing indigenous defence capabilities, reducing imports and improving exports.

Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar and other senior officials of Ministry of Defence were present at the launch of DISC 5.0. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria, Chief of the Army Staff General MM Naravane, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee Vice Admiral AK Jain; young innovators and representatives of the industry attended the event virtually.

The launch of DISC 5.0 by iDEX-DIO comes three years after the launch of DISC 1.0. The launch of DISC 5.0 is a massive leap towards leveraging the startup ecosystem to develop India’s defence technologies, equipment design and manufacturing capabilities. It will encourage startups to become more attuned to innovative concepts and inculcate the approach of creative thinking in India’s budding entrepreneurs.

The iDEX initiative was launched by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in April 2018 to achieve self-reliance and foster innovation & technology development in defence and aerospace sectors.

18-Aug-2021: Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh to launch Defence India Startup Challenge 5.0

Three years after the launch of Defence India Startup Challenge 1.0 (DISC), Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX), Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), will launch DISC 5.0 in New Delhi on August 19, 2021. iDEX provides a platform for different stakeholders in the defence & aerospace sectors, essentially acting as an umbrella organisation to oversee technology development and potential collaborations in the specific field. With initiatives such as DISC and Open Challenges, iDEX is able to utilise the strong science, technology and research talent base of the country to develop new capabilities in defence innovation. DISC 5.0 will have more challenges than the first four DISC editions taken together.

Problem Statements received from the Services and Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) under DISC Round 5 will be launched by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh. iDEX had been designed to infuse latest technology into military warfare closely intertwined with the needs of the Services and reduce dependence on imports, according to Secretary (Defence Production) Shri Raj Kumar.

The Problem Statements by the Services and DPSUs are designed to ensure military advantage in the foreseeable future. The winners receive grants up to Rs 1.5 crore from iDEX, along with support from Partner Incubators and guidance from the Nodal Officers who are the ultimate users.

The launch of DISC 5.0 will be a massive leap towards leveraging the startup ecosystem to develop India’s defence technologies, equipment design and manufacturing capabilities. These challenges will also encourage startups to become more attuned to innovative concepts and inculcate the approach of creative thinking in India’s budding entrepreneurs. Additional Secretary, DDP and CEO, DIO Shri Sanjay Jaju stated that the iDEX process has opened up a whole new ecosystem for Indian startups besides lending visibility to their work. He emphasised that in the long run, this would help these entities build credibility, and even corner foreign contracts.

iDEX features as a procurement avenue under the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP-2020). Ministry of Defence has earmarked a total of Rs 1,000 crore for domestic procurement through iDEX initiative for the financial year 2021-2022. Recently, the Raksha Mantri had approved a budget of Rs 498.8 crore for the next five years to support over 300 startups and foster innovation in defence & aerospace sectors. These announcements have provided assurance of domestic procurement for the myriad of innovations and products being developed by young entrepreneurs, while enabling India’s defence sector to contribute significantly towards $5-trillion economy goal by 2025.

5-Feb-2021: 60 start-ups under DISC given grants of up to Rs 1.5 crore each

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh has said 60 winners out of more than 1,200 start-ups and innovators who participated in Defence India Start-up Challenge (DISC) have received grants of up to Rs 1.5 crore each to build prototypes. In his address at the Start-up Manthan organised on 5th February at Aero India 2021 Raksha Mantri announced that 45 MSMEs participating in Aero India had already received orders worth Rs 203 crore. The annual flagship event was organised on the final day of Aero India 2021. Speaking at the event, Raksha Mantri asked Ministry of Defence officials to consider increasing the finance available to Innovation for Defence Excellence (IDEX) start-ups.

Raksha Mantri applauded India’s ambitious start up program which was started to harness the young talent and entrepreneurship on the clarion call of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. He said that Start Up India was based on three pillars – Simplification and Handholding, Funding and Incentives and Incubation and Industry-Academia Partnerships. He applauded the success of Start-up India in creating an ecosystem of more than 41,000 start-ups, 4.7 lakh jobs and Rs 4,500 crore of investment in 384 start-ups through Fund of Funds Scheme.

Shri Rajnath Singh also spoke of steps taken by the government to give a push to start ups in the defence manufacturing system such as opening up the patents and laboratories of DRDO to private industry, setting up of Young Scientists labs in niche technology areas, programmes like iDEX, Defence India Start-up Challenge (DISC), iDEX4Fauji, etc. He added that the latest version of Defence Acquisition Procedure 2020 allows start-ups to participate in Make in India forums and reserves projects up to Rs 100 crore for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

Raksha Mantri said that iDEX initiative is a decisive step towards achieving self-reliance and is one of the most effective and well-executed defence Start-up ecosystems in the true spirit of the Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Speaking on the aerospace sector, Shri Rajnath Singh added that 300 plus start-ups are currently engaged and iDEX 10 start-ups have developed the products worth Rs 100 Cr which have been displayed in Aero India 2021.

Shri Rajnath Singh also highlighted iDEX4Fauji as an initiative providing opportunities to innovate to the Indian Armed Forces. He further said that iDEX4Fauji opens up a new window allowing Indian soldiers and service personnel to be recognized and rewarded as innovators. He mentioned the innovations done in the field of Robotics in Maritime applications by Lt. Deepak Suman Kumar and wall penetrating Radar by Major Anoop Mishra as examples.

Speaking of the iDEX Open Challenge, he added that the initiative creates opportunities for innovators to propose ways to harness technological capabilities and strengthen our nation’s military capability. Raksha Mantri ended his address expressing hope that the annual flagship event of Start-up Manthan becomes a milestone in start-up engagement in defence.

Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar applauded the growth of the start-up ecosystem and identified the importance of developing standards for its sustainability in future. He mentioned that start-ups in India had treated the challenge of COVID-19 as an opportunity with funding of over Rs two lakh crore in 2020. He said India has shown with innovations such as vaccine development, that it is among the leading innovative countries. This changed the confidence profile of Indian youth, which is on display at iDEX, he added.

Earlier, Secretary (Defence Production) Shri Raj Kumar briefed the gathering about the iDEX process and the measures taken by the Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence to promote start up culture and self-reliance in defence. He said that iDEX had been designed to infuse the latest technology into military warfare closely intertwined with the needs of services and to reduce dependence on imports.

Raksha Mantri handed over Certificates of recognition to innovators under iDEX4Fauji and DISC 4 challenges at the event.

Start-up Manthan is organised under the iDEX banner annually. iDEX was launched by the Prime Minister in April 2018 with the core aim to create corporate models for Indian Defence needs and allow the defence sector to harness start-ups. Since its launch, iDEX has emerged as a national scale ecosystem bringing together military users and operators with start-ups, innovators and entrepreneurs. The event provided a unique opportunity to firms associated with DIO-iDEX to showcase capabilities, products and services to industry leaders and business decision makers.

Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Shantanu Dayal, other senior civil and military officials of Ministry of Defence were present on the occasion. Armed Forces personnel and representatives from start-ups, MSMEs also attended the event.

16-Aug-2021: Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme

In order to boost domestic defence and aerospace manufacturing, Ministry of Defence (MoD) has launched Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme (DTIS) with an outlay of Rs 400 crore for creating state-of-the-art testing infrastructure in partnership with the private industry. The scheme was launched by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh on May 08, 2020. The scheme would run for the duration of five years and envisages setting up of 6-8 Greenfield Defence Testing Infrastructure facilities that are required for defence and aerospace related production.

The projects under the scheme will be provided with up to 75 per cent Government funding in the form of ‘Grant-in-Aid’. The remaining 25 per cent of the project cost will have to be borne by the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) constituents of which will be the Indian private entities and state governments. In this regard, Department of Defence Production/Directorate General of Quality Assurance (DDP/DGQA) has published eight Expression of Interest (EOIs) catering to setting up of defence test facilities in selected domains. The same has been uploaded on https://eprocure.gov.in and https://ddpmod.gov.in. The Request for Proposal (RFP) for the defence test facility for selected aid domains will be issued shortly and published on the above websites.