MSME DEFEXPO 2015 held in Bangalore

NEW DELHI, INDIA: National Small Industries Corporation, Government of India (NSIC Ltd) organized its 4^th edition of the (micro, small and medium enterprises) MSME DEFEXPO 2015, to create a vibrant defence-industrial base with the private industry as its focal point. The event was dedicated to defence sector by Kalraj Mishra, Union Minister, Ministry of MSME, Government of India in the presence of Satish Jarkiholi, Minister for SSI, Government of Karnataka and a host of other dignitaries.

The MSME DEFEXPO 2015 had been especially crafted bearing in mind the  Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, and aims at doubling its procurement value to 75 per cent of its indigenous content, through Indian vendors by the next decade.

On this note, Kalraj Mishra, Union Minister, Ministry of MSME, “India, till recent past, relied heavily on the foreign manufacturers for the procurement of defense related equipment. However, there was always, a need for self-reliance. As we all know that Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in creating a self-reliant base for any industrial sector and that stands true for defence sector as well.  Therefore, our focus now is on enabling SME sector for the supply of equipment, machineries and general consumables, adding SMEs in the supply chain of high technology products and services related to defense sector, as SMEs are real component of indigenization”

Simplification of MSME Registration process through Udyog Adhar, Prioritizing credit to MSMEs, Performance & Credit Rating Scheme, creation of "Credit Guarantee Fund Trust" for MSMEs, "Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme" for Technology Upgradation, National Manufacturing, Scheme for Promotion of Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Agro-Industry (ASPIRE) for creating livelihood are some of the initiatives taken by the Ministry to assist MSMEs to compete in the global market.

The MSME DEFEXPO 2015 was aimed both at expanding the optimization of the national manufacturing base as well as minimizing dependence on foreign investors. Uniting the Indian Defence and Security sectors on a single platform, the expo also witnessed a conglomeration of several security officers from neighboring countries instilling a pan-South Asian presence to the event.

Around 200 MSME exhibitors including 10 International Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) like Boeing, Airbus, Honeywell and Zen Air Defence Canada, are participating in this exhibition.