Virendra Singh Rawat
Lucknow / Nov 18, 2021
Within days of clubbing prosperity with national security, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation of a defence manufacturing project in the Jhansi node of Uttar Pradesh Defence Corridor on Friday.
Modi will lay the foundation of Rs 400 crore project of public sector weapons and missile systems major, Bharat Dynamics Limited. The proposed plant, spread over 183 acres, will manufacture propulsion system for anti-tank guided missiles.
On Tuesday (Nov 16), Modi had inaugurated Rs 23,000 crore Purvanchal Expressway after landing on its 3-km airstrip at Sultanpur district aboard an Indian Air Force (IAF) Hercules aircraft. Later, an air show was also held featuring latest IAF fighter jets viz. Mirage, Jaguar and Sukhoi. In his address, he had noted prosperity and national security went hand in hand even as he slammed the previous regimes for neglecting India’s defence needs.
Meanwhile, the PM, on the concluding day of ‘Rashtra Raksha Samarpan Parv’, will also hand over indigenously developed defence ware including light combat helicopter (LCH) to the Indian Air Force (IAF), drones to the Indian Army and advanced electronic warfare suites for destroyers, aircraft carriers and frigates to the Indian Navy
Other events to be launched or inaugurated during the three-day ongoing fest in Jhansi include the commemoration of 193rd birth anniversary of warrior queen Rani Laxmi Bai, who was among the leading figures to partake in the 1857 first war of independence.
The LCH has been designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). It is touted as the world’s sole attack chopper with landing and takeoff capability at an altitude of 5,000 metres with heavy weapons payload.
According to officials, the drones to be handed over to the Army have been designed and developed by Indian startups. The warfare suite has been designed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL).
Besides, the defence ministry will launch a pan India programme to scale up simulation training facilities for all the three wings of the National Cadet Corps (NCC).
Modi will virtually dedicate two electronic kiosks at the National War Memorial in Delhi, that will allow visitors to register their presence and pay virtual homage to the fallen heroes. He will launch a mobile app that facilitates a virtual tour of the National War Memorial with a 360-degree experience.