Thaindian News

New Delhi, Feb 16 (IANS) Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallam Raju Tuesday said 41 offset contracts worth Rs.49,000 crore (Rs.490 billion) are in the pipeline that would help further the growth of India’s defence industry.
“There are 41 offset contacts worth more than Rs.49,000 crore in the pipeline at various stages of negotiations which are going to materialise in the next couple of years. This will provide further impetus to the Indian industry,” Raju said at a seminar at the Defexpo 2010 here.

“India is committed and alive to aspirations of private industry and their problems. More than Rs.4,200 crore of offset contracts have already been materialised,” he said.

Under an offset contract, a percentage of all deals has to be reinvested in the Indian industry.

The offset clause is applicable for all procurement proposals where indicative cost is above Rs.300 crore and the schemes are categorised as ‘Buy (Global)’, which involves outright purchase from foreign/Indian vendors, and ‘Buy and Make with Transfer of Technology’, which means purchase from foreign vendors followed by licensed production.

He said India has no intention to unnecessarily project military might (power) beyond its frontiers.

“The external challenges are going to be complex and multifarious in times to come, given the global geopolitical situation and specially the one in our near neighbourhood. India, as a nation state, is progressing, and progressing fast, economically and in many other sectors, which is going to result in multi-spectral and multi-dimensional challenges from within and outside, for which our armed forces have to remain ever ready for all eventualities,” he added.