From an automobile and allied industries manufacturing hub, Tamil Nadu is evolving into a knowledge hub as it focuses on drawing investments in R&D, design, aerospace and defence sectors, according to MS Shanmugam, Additional Secretary (Industries Department), Tamil Nadu government.
At an interactive session on organised by Assocham, he said the State government is in the process of creating a dynamic Intellectual Property Rights cell that will strengthen the ability to attract investments in technology-intensive areas. This is in line with the Centre’s suggestion to create such IPR cells, to protect ownership of innovation.
Chennai’s suburbs
At the session on opportunities for MSMEs in defence manufacturing, Assocham released a study on the potential to create a industry cluster dedicated to meet the needs of the defence sector in Chennai’s suburbs.
The industrial hubs to the west in the vicinity of Avadi and Ambattur, which are major centres of MSME units, can utilise the emerging investment opportunity. The State government should establish a defence cluster, the report said. Vinod Surana, co-Chairman of Assocham (Tamil Nadu), said the defence cluster can match the automobile sector in State, which has attracted most global players in terms of investments and job generation, over the next decade.
Defence manufacturing
The State government should come out with a Defence Manufacturing Policy that will encourage investments into the sector, said the report titled “Defence Manufacturing in India: Emerging Opportunities for the MSMEs”. The report will be presented to the government, he said.
It points out that Avadi is a hub of major defence establishments such as the IAF, Army, Heavy Vehicles Factory, which manufactures battle tanks, and Combat Vehicles Research and Development. Also, industrial estates including Ambattur, Sriperumbudur, Orgadam and Maraimalai Nagar are large hubs catering to automobiles and allied industries and IT sectors including hardware and software.
The basic elements are in place but some gaps need to be filled for a defence industry cluster – design and testing facilities, documentations centres, training facilities and land for manufacturing areas.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
