Armed forces have temptation to opt for imported weapons: DRDO

New Delhi, May 26 (PTI) Under attack for delays in
projects, DRDO on Wednesday said the onus of self-reliance
cannot be put on it alone and targeted the defence services
for their "overwhelming" temptation to opt for imported weapon
systems.

In a strong statement here in presence of Indian Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh, Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) chief V K Saraswat said the responsibility
of self-reliance was to be shared by all stake-holders but the
Indian Industry has not yet matured to take it up.
"The Services also must understand that while the
temptation may be overwhelming, to field proven, state-of-art
imported systems, they (industry) too have a role to play in
the economic and industrial growth of the country. No foreign
system can be customised to completely address our long term
requirement," he said.
"DRDO has long been held responsible for the level of
self-reliance in defence systems, but it must be understood
that the responsibility for self-reliance should be shared by
all stakeholders of defence ministry and cannot be placed on
DRDO alone," Saraswat said at the DRDO's National Technology
Day award function here.
He said DRDO neither has the power to impose its products
on its customers nor the mandate or capacity to produce the
developed systems all by themselves.
Saraswat's defence came as the Prime Minister pointed out
that some DRDO projects have been delayed and others have
faced difficulties during operational induction.
"It is essential that DRDO learn from these experiences
and work more closely with the Armed Forces, as well as the
industry," Singh said as he pitched for greater participation
of the industry in the defence sector.
Tasked to develop defence technologies indigenously, DRDO
is often blamed by the armed forces for not completing
ambitious projects such as the Light Combat Aircraft and Arjun
tank on time forcing the country to look at foreign sources
for its defence needs.
Saraswat listed launch of the first indigenously-built
nuclear submarine INS Arihant, successful test-firings of the
ballistic missile defence systems as few of the key
achievements of the research agency in the recent past. PTI
SKU