Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will launch the Defence Industrial Production Corridor in Tiruchi on January 20 (Sunday). Defence Ministry expectes Rs 4000 crore investment in the corridor. Speaking to the media, Secretary, Defence Production, Ajay Kumar, said, "Apart from major industry interaction there will be three main things — announcement of new investments both by Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSU) and the private sector, launch of new defence products and launch of a defence innovation hub in Coimbatore." Talking about the future scope of the corridors, he said, "Tamil Nadu will be very good for aero components due to its auto expertise and proximity to Bengaluru."
The corridor will have six nodes around which investments are expected to grow. They include Hosur, Salem, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli, Madurai and Chennai. Ajay Kumar said the Tamil Nadu Defence corridor is expected to attract more initial investment than Rs. 3,700 crore announced when the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor was unveiled last year.
Several companies based out of Tamilnadu, including big firms and MSMEs that either manufacture defence equipment or are ready to begin production, are set to sign multiple Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the State Defence Purchase Department in Tiruchi. New defence products and a Coimbatore defence innovation hub will also be inaugurated by Nirmala Sitharaman.
