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Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visited Ashok Leyland's manufacturing plant in Lucknow on Friday. During his visit for the inauguration of the EV plant, he reviewed the production of Light Tactical Vehicles, Unmanned Ground Vehicles, Mine Protected Vehicles and Logistics Drones manufactured at the facility. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was also present during this visit.
In his inaugural speech, the Defence Minister said, "Today in Uttar Pradesh, the government has established a Defence Corridor. Weapons and ammunition related to the armed forces are now being manufactured in Lucknow, Kanpur, Jhansi, Agra, Chitrakoot, and Aligarh. Investments of more than Rs. 34,000 crore have already taken place. Large companies are coming and setting up factories. This has directly benefited locals also." "A BrahMos factory has also been set up in Lucknow, the impact of which you must have seen during Operation Sindoor. India is now producing its own weapons. Uttar Pradesh is continuously playing a major role in this tactical reform." He added. He also said that, "the Uttar Pradesh government has made a separate policy; the Aerospace and Defence Unit and Employment Promotion Policy. This means Uttar Pradesh is being developed as a state where military equipment will be manufactured on a large scale." Rajnath also highlighted the self-reliance in the defence sector. He said, "As the Defence Minister, when I speak of self-reliance, the defence sector has fully moved in this direction. Our domestic defence production was Rs. 46,000 crore in 2014, which has now reached Rs. 1.5 lakh crore. Today, our defence exports are Rs. 25,000 crore, and by 2030 this will increase to Rs. 50,000 crore." Mentioning the industrialisation in the state, the Defence Minister said that, "Uttar Pradesh, which was once known for lawlessness, is today witnessing a transformation driven by industrial push. UP is now playing a major role in the country's development. This Ashok Leyland EV facility will bring significant benefits to the locals. This plant will play a major role in achieving the economic targets of Uttar Pradesh. The construction of this plant was scheduled to be completed in 60 months, but it was completed in a record 18 months. From here, 2,500 EVs will roll out every year." (ANI)
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