Lucknow, February 4: The 11th edition of defence exhibition, DefExpo 2020, will begin from February 5 in Lucknow. A total of 1,029 companies will participate in the biennial mega defence exhibition. Meanwhile, the number of participating foreign companies has also increased to 165 from the previous figure of 160. The five-day event will conclude on February 9. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the expo. The defence event is based on the theme “Digital transformation of defence” which aligns with the concept of the future battlefield. DefExpo 2020: Rajnath Singh and UP CM Yogi Adityanath Meet Officials Ahead of Mega Event Scheduled February 5-9.

India will showcase its defence products and technologies developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in the DefExpo 2020 with an aim to give the necessary impetus to ‘Make in India’ programme. The event is expected to see participation from over 70 countries and will be in line with the biggest of the international defence exhibitions. DefExpo 2018 Highlights: 'Make in India' Resonates at 4-Day Mega Defence Exhibition.

Defence Public Sector Units (DPSU) and personnel of three services will also give live demonstrations of equipment. The “India Pavilion” will exclusively showcase the jointness between the public and private sector, including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)/Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and innovation eco-system, which is the key to the way forward.

According to reports, Army’s Tk-T-90, BMP, Simulators Firing Range, Surface Mine Clearing System (SMCS), Bridge Layer Tank, AKASH - Surface To Air Missile, K-9 VAJRA and Ultra-Light Howitzer will be exhibited in the event.

Arrangements have been made to hold 19 technical and business seminars, of which 15 will be organised by various industry chambers, including the Confederation of Indian Industries, the PHD Chambers of Commerce and The Associated Chambers of Commerce of India. The topics for these seminars will be largely futuristic and include discussions on artificial intelligence, robotics, Internet of Things (IoTs), drones, wired warrior, etc.

In 2018, the DefExpo was held from April 11 – 14 at Thiruvidanthai on the East Coast Road (ECR) near Chennai. The theme of the Defexpo 2018 was “India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub”. More than 500 domestic companies and around 163 global players of defence manufacturing industry participated in the event.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 04, 2020 12:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).