Indian defence industry interested in partnering with Bangladesh: Pranay Verma

The High Commission of India in Bangladesh Tuesday organised a seminar in the capital city that highlighted the advances made by the Indian defence industry in the last decade and its interest in partnering with Bangladesh.

Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma and Bangladesh Armed Forces Division Principal Staff Officer Lieutenant General MR Shameem addressed the Seminar on Indian Defence Equipment (SIDE) 2024.

Addressing the seminar, Pranay Verma highlighted the advances made by the Indian defence industry over the last decade driven by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of “Make in India” and “Make for the World”, which has spurred unprecedented investments into the Indian defence manufacturing sector and has led to rising Indian defence exports.

He described SIDE 2024 as a reflection of Indian defence industry’s interest in partnering with Bangladesh and to take Bangladesh-India defence cooperation forward to the next level, including by utilising the Defence Line of Credit of US$500 million extended by Government of India to Government of Bangladesh.

The Indian High Commissioner noted that India is willing to share with Bangladesh wide-spectrum capabilities in defence manufacturing, including the most sophisticated technologies.

He also proposed graduating the bilateral defence cooperation to the next level by building joint ventures in defence manufacturing.

A number of premier defence manufacturing companies of India, from both public and private sectors, participated in the event and made presentations showcasing a range of ‘Made in India’ defence equipment, technology and platforms.

The seminar was attended by representatives from Bangladesh Armed Forces as well as paramilitary and police forces.