GANDHINAGAR: DefExpo 2022 was inaguarated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday in Gandhinagar.
Gujarat's Gandhinagar is hosting DefExpo 2022, India's "largest ever" defence exhibition, with the goal of boosting the defence industry. The event, with the theme "Path to Pride," is currently in its 12th year.

The indigenous trainer aircraft HTT-40, created by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, was unveiled at the India Pavilion by the Prime Minister (HAL). 

The aircraft, according to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), has state of art contemporary systems and has been designed with pilot-friendly features.

In conjunction with the programme, the prime minister also unveiled Mission DefSpace, an initiative to use companies and entrepreneurs to build state of art space solutions for the Defense Forces. PM Modi also laid the foundation stone for 52 Wing Air Force Station Deesa at the official opening ceremony.

This year's DefExpo is the first-ever edition exclusively for Indian entitiesParticipants from India include Indian enterprises, Indian subsidiaries of foreign OEMs, a division of a corporation established in India, and an exhibitor that has a joint venture with an Indian company.

The seven new defence businesses, which were formed from the former Ordnance Factory Board, are also celebrating their first anniversary at DefExpo 2022.

These companies will all be taking part in DefExpo for the first time. Nearly twice as many MoUs, agreements for the transfer of technology, and product launches as in the last iteration are anticipated during the Bandhan ceremony on October 20.

The Department of Defence Production's flagship pavilion, the India Pavilion, will highlight India's vision for 2047 while showcasing the development of domestic defence products, start-ups, and cutting-edge technology, including artificial intelligence in defence.

In addition, an exclusive Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) Pavilion will be present to highlight the expertise of the nation's start-up businesses engaged in R&D and innovation in  futuristic technologies.

States and Union Territories (UTs) have been asked to erect pavilions at the event for the first time. The Defense Minister has made it clear that with this new effort, States and UTs will have the chance to contribute to nation-building by luring investment and enhancing their capacity for domestic aerospace and defence manufacture.

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