There is a major opportunity for Start-ups and MSMEs to gear up in providing innovations in transforming India to a leadership position”, says Dr. Samir V Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman, DRDO

Dr. Samir V Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was the Chief Guest for the Conference which also saw the presence of Mr. Arjun Kumar, Associate Director, TDF, Defence Research & Development Organisation, Ministry of Defence, Government of India, Mr. M.K Gupta, Former Chairman, PHDCCI Defence & HLS Committee, Mr. Salil Gupte, President, Boeing India, Mr. Dhaval Rawal, Chairman, PHDCCI Gujarat State Chapter Defence Committee, Mr. Ashok Wadhawan, Head Land Systems, Defence & Aerospace, Adani Group, Capt. Nikunj  Parashar, Founder, Sagar Defence Engineering, Dr. R Shivaraman, Founder & CTO, Big Bang Boom Solutions, Mr. Vipul Patel, Partner-Seed Investing, CIIE, IIM Ahmedabad, Mr. Sandeep Dave, CEO, Abhyuday Bharat Mega Defense Cluster , Mr. Vishal Saxena, Vice President – Surveillance & Mapping Business, ideaForge Technology, Ms. Anisha Pal, DGM, SIDBI , Mr. Sudhir Naik, Founder Member eInfochips Ltd, Mr. Amrendra Kumar Jha, AGM & Zonal Head, UCO Bank and

The session was moderated by Cdr Ajay Panwar, Senior Consultant, EY & Dr Nasir Jamal, Secretary (Defence & HLS), PHDCCI.

The Welcome Address was given by Mr. M.K Gupta, Former Chairman, PHDCCI Defence & HLS Committee  and the Vote of Thanks was given by  Dr. Nasir Jamal, Secretary (Defence & HLS), PHDCCI.

Dr. Sameer V Kamat in his address shares the various initiatives the Govt of India is undertaking to promote MSMEs and Start-Ups in Defence Sector. He shared that 25% of R&D budget is reserved for the private sector for which he invited the MSMEs and Start-Ups to apply under this initiative and seek support from the Govt in developing a Robust R&D based Defence eco system in the country. He also stated that there are major opportunities for start-ups and MSMEs to gear up in providing innovations in transforming India to a leadership position.

In his welcome address Mr. M.K Gupta, shared the glimpse of the PHDCCI Defence & HLS Committee and its various initiatives for the promoting indigenisation in Defence & HLS Sector. He urged the bigger OEMs to integrate with MSMEs & Start-Ups in their supply chain and provide investment to them.

Mr. Arjun Kumar gave a detailed presentation on Technology Development fund and the underlying opportunities to MSMEs & Start-Ups through funding support and assistance in product development.

Mr. Salil Gupte highlighted the importance of MSMEs in start-Ups in the Global Defence Supply chain & the various initiatives of Boeing worldwide for promoting the interest of MSMEs. He stressed on the need for greater investment in the Aerospace & Defence Sector since it is a very capital intensive industry.

Mr. Dhaval Rawal shared the details about the mega initiatives to establish a MSME defence cluster where all the facilities and resources provided to MSMEs under one roof to start them and make them successful.

Mr. Ashok Wadhawan explained how Defence supply chains work and also highlighted how the OEMs can help MSMEs and Start-Ups in exports on a larger level.

Mr. Nikunj Parashar gave insight into the support given by the Ministry of Defence in handholding the MSMEs and the Start-Ups to the extent possible in and integrating them in OEMs supply chain. He also mentioned about the various challenges faced by Start-Ups.

Mr. Sandeep Dave highlighted the various financing & investment options for the MSMEs & Start-Ups, he also mentioned various categories about the alternative investment fund.

Mr. Vipul Patel focused on various themes like deep-tech, Inclusion & sustainably. He also highlighted how they are supporting Start-Ups actively.

Mr. Vishal Saxena shared about the altogether different level of experience working with the Ministry of Defence.

Ms. Anisha Pal highlighted the various schemes of SIDBI especially SAMRIDHI funds for the benefits of Start-Ups & MSMEs.

Mr. Sudhir Naik talked about the fund availability in Defence Market for defence companies and about the various opportunities for the MSMEs & Start-Ups.