Indian Army conducts a seminar on theme 'Year of Tech Absorption, Empowering the Soldier'
Author: BI Bureau
New Delhi: A seminar cum exhibition was conducted by the Indian Army on the theme “Year of Technology Absorption - Empowering the Soldier” on Wedneday. The event was conducted by the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS), on behalf of the Indian Army in Manekshaw Centre.
The seminar brought together technology experts and industry professionals to deliberate on the adoption of modern technologies like Artificial Intelligence and advanced hardware in the military domain. It aimed at fostering a collaborative environment for academia and the defence industry to fast-pace the ongoing initiatives for technological absorption in the military.
The event commenced with an inaugural address by General Manoj Pande, Chief of the Army Staff (COAS). Keynote Address was delivered by Dr Chintan Vaishnav, Mission Director, Atal Innovation Mission (AIM, NITI AAYOG). This was followed by an exhibition, demonstrating the progress and capabilities of India’s Defence Sector.
The COAS underscored the vital need of being self-reliant in warfighting platforms and systems besides achieving self-sufficiency in critical technologies through indigenous Research & Development. He emphasised that the Technology has emerged as the new strategic arena of competition which drives geo-political powerplay. He also said that technology is being leveraged for weaponisation of varied domains, ranging from Information to Supply Chains. Citing examples from recent conflicts, he mentioned that disruptive and dual use technologies are proliferating at unprecedented scale and transforming the Character of Modern Wars. He mentioned that a suite of digital technologies encompassing Electronic Warfare, Micro-electronics, Drones, Precision Attack Systems, Loiter Munitions and Star-link Terminals are challenging traditional force multipliers.
The COAS reiterated the commitment of Indian Army to continue its pursuit towards transitioning into a modern, agile, adaptive and technology enabled future ready force. He urged all stakeholders, the Services, Industry Partners, Start-Ups, Research & Development institutions, Academia and Policy Makers to synergise their efforts and develop a vibrant national defence eco-system.
The seminar was conducted in three sessions, with first session focussed on “Contemporary Technology and Industry Capabilities”. The session was moderated by Lieutenant General Vineet Gaur, Director General Capability Development and the speakers were eminent personalities from academia and industry such as Prof Mayank Vatsa (IIT Jodhpur), Dr Mandira Majumder, Rajiv Mehrotra, Vaibhav Gupta, and Colonel Karandeep Singh (Retired). This session analysed the emerging role of the Indian Defence Industry in strengthening of overall defence architecture. The speakers also deliberated upon the technology developed so far and future roadmap to build cutting-edge technologies for military usages.
The second session was moderated by Lieutenant General Subrata Saha (Retired) and focussed on “Empowering Soldiers: Amplifying Impact Through Modern Technologies”. Major General Sunil Mehrotra from Signals Directorate and Shri SB Taneja from DRDO examined options to leverage present and next-generation technologies to enhance the capabilities of Indian Army. Looking beyond the domain of land, this session analysed the role of space and cyber domains in the present context and future scenarios.
The final session on “Maximising Technology Effectiveness & Soldier Preparedness” was moderated by Lieutenant General PR Shankar (Retired). The speakers were Lieutenant General Rajesh Pant (Retired), Geo George Philip, Dr K Mohanavelu, and Major General Ajay Sharma. The participants brainstormed wide-ranging options ranging from military applications of cyberspace, impact of drones and satellites on the modern battlefield, besides delving upon hardware and software options to empower soldiers.
The seminar culminated with closing remarks by Lieutenant General Tarun Kumar Aich, Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Strategy). Reflecting positive thoughts on impressive trajectory of Indian Army’s transformation, he reiterated that adoption of niche technology in tandem with agile doctrinal reforms is extremely crucial. He also stated that Indian Army will continue to foster a spirit of collaboration with the industry and academia to empower the soldiers.
The proceedings underscored the importance of technology absorption in empowering soldiers besides providing a snapshot of available solutions and highlighted the contributions of the Indian Defence Industry, delineating their strengths, future trajectories, and their pivotal role in ensuring future ready armed forces. /BI
More In Tech Governance
The exports of agricultural commodities from March to June 2020 shot up by 23.24 percent on-year to Rs 25,552.7 crores.
As the economy comes to a standstill amid the coronavirus-led lockdown, India’s agriculture sector has taken the baton of economic growth in its hands. The exports of agricultural commodities from March to June 2020 shot up by 23.24 percent on-year to Rs 25,552.7 crores, according to the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare. The government said that self-reliant agriculture is critical for the goal of an Atmanirbhar Bharat and for this, agricultural export is extremely important as besides earning foreign exchange for the country, the exports help farmers, producers, and exporters to take advantage of the wider international market and increase their income.
The surge in exports has also resulted in increased production in the farm sector by increasing coverage area and productivity. The share of India’s agricultural exports and imports in the world agriculture trade in 2017 was 2.27 percent and 1.90 percent, respectively. Even during the difficult time of pandemic lockdown, India took care not to disturb the world food supply chain and continued to export, the government said.
Ministry of Agriculture has prepared a comprehensive action plan for the promotion of Agri trade; the twofold approach focuses on boosting Agri Export with emphasis on value addition and action plan for Import Substitution. Recently, the Agriculture sector has witnessed a series of reforms, giving more choices to the farmers to sell their produce at competitive rates.
To mention a few, the Export strategy focuses on the export promotion of fast-evolving niche markets of Wellness food/ Health-conscious food/nutraceuticals, Development of “Brand India” in campaign mode to help penetration into new foreign markets and of new products which automatically translates into higher value realization, Gulf countries have been identified as focus destination to increase the market share which is a strong market for India though presently India caters to only 10-12% share of their total imports. A product-market matrix has been made containing a list of products of strength that could be expanded in new geographies and a list of known markets which can be introduced with newer products.
At the behest of the Department of Agricultural Cooperation & Farmers’ Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture, product-specific Export Promotion Forums have been created to lead Agri exports to new heights. Each Export Promotion Forum shall be having exporters of the related commodity as its members along with official members representing concerned Ministries/Departments of the Central and State Governments. Chairman APEDA shall be the chairman of each of these forums. The forums will meet at least once every two months, to discuss recommendations on issues pertaining to the export.
The recommendations of the forum will be placed in the product committee / Authority of APEDA. The Forum will keep in close contact with the concerned organization of the Ministry of Agriculture such as MIDH, Extension, NPPO, etc., DGFT, Ministry of Civil Aviation, MoFPI, etc. to further the interest of agricultural export.
