Telangana to emerge as Defence Strategic Hub of India, says Sridhar Babu

Telangana Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu announced plans to position the state as India’s Defence Strategic Hub by fostering an ecosystem for unmanned systems and advanced defence manufacturing. The government is preparing a roadmap with emphasis on drone technologies and aerospace innovation.

Hyderabad: Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu on Tuesday said Telangana was working towards positioning itself as the Defence Strategic Hub of India by developing a strong ecosystem for unmanned systems and advanced defence manufacturing.

The State government was preparing a comprehensive roadmap to transform Telangana into a global leader in defence innovation, with a special focus on unmanned aerial systems, drone technologies and aerospace manufacturing, he said.

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“As part of this initiative, plans are being made to establish a Drone Manufacturing and Testing Corridor to boost indigenous defence capabilities,” Sridhar Babu said while speaking after ground-breaking for the proposed JSW Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Facility at the Electronic Manufacturing Cluster (EMC), Maheshwaram.

The facility is being set up by JSW Defence in partnership with Shield AI with an investment of Rs 850 crore. Spread across 16 acres, the facility will manufacture up to 300 VBAT drones annually and is scheduled to begin operations by the end of next year.