Adani Defence inaugurates “South Asia’s largest ammunition complex” - Broadsword by Ajai Shukla

•       Spread over 500 acres, full spectrum of ammunition to be manufactured
•       Investment plan of INR 3000+ Crores with 4000+ jobs and 5X multiplier
•       Industry 4.0 – state of the art automation including use of AI for quality
•       Production started in less than 18 months from land allocation

 

By Vikas Gupta

 

In what the company characterizes as “a landmark achievement for India’s defence sector,” Adani Defence and Aerospace (Adani Defence), inaugurated two mega facilities on Monday to manufacture ammunition and missiles.

 

“The establishment of these ammunition and missiles complexes represents a leap forward in our quest for self-reliance. With a planned investment of over Rs 3,000 crores, its impact extends far beyond the defence sector. It will create over 4,000 jobs, with five times the multiplier effect on medium, small and micro enterprises (MSMEs),” said Ashish Rajvanshi, who heads Adani Defence.

 

The inauguration coincided with the fifth anniversary of ‘Operation Bandar’, the Indian Air Force (IAF) bomb strikes on a terrorist camp inside Pakistani territory. The IAF strikes were in retaliation for a suicide car bomb attack near Pulwama, just outside Srinagar.

 

The Pakistani extremist group, Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), claimed credit for the killing of close to 40 Indian policemen in the car bomb attack, leading to Indian air strikes on the JeM’s training base at Balakot.

 

The inauguration of the ammunition manufacturing facilities were inaugurated by the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath; Chief of Army Staff, General Manoj Pande Central Command chief, Lieutenant General NS Raja Subramani and officials from the Defence Ministry and UP government. 

 

According to Adani Defence, the 500 acre-facility in Kanpur is set to become one of Asia’s largest integrated ammunition manufacturing complexes. It will produce high-quality small, medium and large calibre ammunition for the armed forces, paramilitary forces and police. 

The facility has started rolling out small calibre ammunition, starting with 150 million rounds estimated at 25% of India’s annual requirement.  

 

Speaking on the occasion, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said, “Adani Defence & Aerospace has made the largest investment in the Uttar Pradesh defence corridor… It is encouraging to see the commencement of operations within 18 months of allocating land.”

 

Emphasizing the need for self-reliance in ammunition, army chief, General Manoj Pande said, “Recent geopolitical events have reemphasized the need for a reliable supply from internal sources for ammunition in preparedness for a long-drawn conflict. Such large investments and willingness of Adani Defence & Aerospace to indigenize critical technologies have built confidence in the users to depend on Indian private industry for strategic military supplies. This complex is a major milestone in India’s journey towards self-reliance in the defence sector.” 

 

Adani Defence is the flagship defence company of the Adani Group. An industry 4.0 facility, its extensive automation ensures the highest standards in quality, safety and reliability using artificial intelligence and data analytics, the company claims.

 

Further, being a PESO certified complex, it will also house explosive handling facilities for missiles and precision-guided munitions.