The Hindu Business Line : Govt mulls inclusion of tech transfer in defence sector

New Delhi May 9 The Government is considering suggestions by IT and software associates for inclusion of technology transfer as part of offsets in the Defence sector, said Dr Kiran Chadha, Joint Secretary (Exports), Ministry of Defence.

The Government is also considering banking of offset credits and dispensing with the requirement of licences for software and services sector.

While speaking at a seminar organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), she said, "The way ahead for any software firm is to market itself and enter into an understanding with foreign vendors or companies proposing to participate in future defence procurements."

For this, it would be desirable to identify defence platforms for specific software development and application, she said and added, "Your software infrastructure should be ready and available for foreign vendors for adaptation to their needs and for this you will also require interaction with the end users, which is the armed forces."

Dr Chadha said that large procurement deals were in the pipeline where software is an integral part. This includes data link systems, network-centric warfare and various platforms for the Navy, Air Force and land systems.