National road map for strategic materials in the works

A task force to create a national road map for strategic materials and their indigenisation had been constituted based on a direction from Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a webinar held in February as part of the Budget announcements, said Sanjay Jaju, Joint Secretary, Department of Defence Production, Defence Ministry, on Tuesday.

“We have been conducting multiple meetings. I am sure we are not just going to come up with the requirement of strategic materials, including steel, over the course of next 10 years, but will also be creating a proper action plan for indigenisation of such materials,” he stated at a webinar organised by the Society of Indian Defence manufacturers. Steel and steel alloys were a very important part of strategic materials, he pointed out.

The Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020 laid emphasis on indigenous availability of high-end materials and special alloys were a prerequisite for indigenisation, he noted. The defence sector could not offer the volumes the steel industry wanted, as it was very large. But what it could offer was value.

Defence manufacturing required several types of special grade steel and materials and over the years, several of them were being produced in the country.

However, several speakers observed that the domestically produced steel and materials were many times more expensive than the foreign ones, prompting their import.

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