He visited the headquarters of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) here and interacted with senior scientists and various officials to mark its 67th foundation day, the defence ministry said.
Singh called upon the DRDO to continue moving ahead “in sync with the rapidly-evolving technological ecosystem”, and keep coming out with products that are relevant to the changing times.
India on Wednesday declared 2025 as the year of defence reforms saying the aim will be to facilitate rolling out integrated theatre commands to bolster synergy among the three services and transform the military into a technologically-advanced combat-ready force.
The broader aim of the reforms planned by the defence ministry would be to make the defence acquisition procedures simpler and time-sensitive, ensure deeper collaboration among key stakeholders, break silos, eliminate inefficiencies and optimise utilisation of resources.
Singh on Wednesday had said the reforms would lay the foundation for “unprecedented” advancements in defence preparedness and ensure India’s security and sovereignty amid challenges of the 21st century.
On Thursday, he urged the DRDO scientists to “keep an eye” on the products and processes being adopted by the technologically-advanced countries, and develop niche technologies with an aim to make the DRDO “one of the strongest R&D organisations in the world”.
He also expressed his view that each lab of the DRDO should “identify two-three critical projects”, which should be completed by 2025, the statement said.
“By the next foundation year, we should have 100 such projects completed,” he said.
Singh appreciated the efforts of the DRDO towards increasing collaboration with the private sector, including providing its technologies and free access to its patents.
