New Delhi: From the production of ships and submarines to spare parts and weapons, the Indian Navy will be “completely” self-reliant by 2047, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R Hari Kumar said.
“We will be absolute ‘Atmanirbhar’ Navy. That is what we are targeting,” Admiral Kumar asserted on Monday replying to questions at the India Defense Conclave 2022. Indian Navy had embarked on its “Indianization drive’ in 1961 when INS Ajay, the first small patrol boat, was indigenously made in India,” he said, “Since then, we have progressed a lot.”
Admiral Kumar said that there was much to learn from the Russia-Ukraine conflict which witnessed the use of new technologies, cyberspace, and all sorts of precision ammunition. The conflict between the two countries has underscored the necessity of ‘Atmanirbharta’ to defend one’s country, he said.
“By 2047, we will have a complete indigenous Navy, whether ships, submarines, aircraft, unmanned systems, weapons – the entire complex,” Admiral Kumar said.
Asked if the supply chain of the Indian Navy was affected due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, he said, “As of now, we are not hard pressed. We have adequate stock of spares. There has been no let-up in India’s deployment of ships or aircraft today. We have taken steps to get help from our own industry.”
