Defence Minister Rajnath Singh laid the foundation stone for the Defence Technology & Test Centre and BRAHMOS Manufacturing Centre, established by Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The foundation for the two units was laid in the presence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. A first of its kind Defence Technologies & Test Centre (DTTC), over approximately 22 acres is being set up to accelerate the growth of the defence and aerospace manufacturing clusters in Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor (UP DIC). It will consist of the following six sub centres such as Deep-Tech Innovation & Startup Incubation Centre, Design & Simulation Centre, Testing & Evaluation Centre, Centre for Industry 4.0/Digital Manufacturing, Skill Development Centre, Business Development Centre .
The BRAHMOS Manufacturing Centre, announced by BrahMos Aerospace, is a modern, state-of-art facility in the Lucknow node of UP DIC. It will cover over 200 acres and produce the new BRAHMOS-NG (Next Generation) variant, which carries forward the lineage of the BRAHMOS weapons system. This new centre would be ready over the next two to three years and will commence production at a rate of 80-100 BRAHMOS-NG missiles per year.
Congratulating the scientists and engineers of DRDO & BrahMos Aerospace, Rajnath Singh exuded confidence that the two units will play a pivotal role in bolstering national security, defence production as well as the economy of Uttar Pradesh. He said, the state-of-the-art facilities will prove to be an important milestone in the defence sector. He added that the establishment of these units will generate revenue; provide employment opportunities to the youth and help in achieving ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said that the message of Make in India, Make for India and Make for World has been sent out globally.
On the ‘Defence Technology and Test Centre’, the Defence Minister said, the Centre will provide the technological base to develop defence products keeping in mind the young innovators and startups in Amausi region of Uttar Pradesh. He added that the Centre will make all endeavours to fulfil the creative energy, capabilities, and aspirations of the youth of Uttar Pradesh. It will help in bringing the MSMEs of Uttar Pradesh together and bring the state at the forefront in the field of defence and aerospace manufacturing, he said. He added that the Centre, through skill development, will create direct and indirect employment in the field of defence and aerospace manufacturing.
Speaking on the occasion, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath thanked Defence Minister Rajnath Singh for the initiatives of Ministry of Defence such as UP DIC, DefExpo-2020 and the establishment of a unit of Bharat Dynamics Limited in Jhansi. He said, the work had started in all six nodes of the UP DIC and that the foundation stone laying of the two units is a fulfilment of the vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ in the defence sector. The Chief Minister added that the units will provide avenues for employment for youth of the state and expressed confidence that the units will make a significant contribution to the progress of the state as also the nation. Shri Yogi Adityanath highlighted Uttar Pradesh’s potential for progress in the defence sector due to the large number of Medium, Small Scale and Micro Enterprises (MSMEs) in the state. He assured all possible support of the state government to defence sector industries coming to the state.
