Thaindian News

Kolkata, Oct 25 (IANS) Pointing out that private shipyards have secured substantial orders in recent times, Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallam Raju Tuesday said defence public sector units (PSUs) need to increase their efficiency to be more competitive in the future.

?There is a lot of demand for the warship building in Indian Navy and also by the Coast Guard. And parallely, there is a lot of demand for all kinds of boats, ships and crafts. As a result the private shipyards also have substantial orders,? Raju told reporters here.

Raju was in the city to launch the country’s second indigenous anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kadmat built by the state-owned Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE).

?In the coming years, the private shipyards will also try to secure orders for warship construction also. That is why it is important that the efficiencies of the defence PSUs pick up and they place themselves much more competitively for the coming competition,? he said.

He, however, said GRSE and other defence shipyards had a good lead over other shipyards for building warships.

?And if they maintain that lead through their efficiency and adopting modern practices, I am sure that they will be able to secure more orders,? he said.

Raju said modernisation of the GRSE was likely to double the capacity of the yard by the next year.

He said GRSE will build larger warships in the coming years.

On future orders, the minister said: “A lot of fast aircraft (orders) are coming in… and a Landing Craft Utility (LCU) which is also used by the Indian Navy.”