Defence Technology Council

Defence Technology Council

News: Recently an expert committee headed by Prof K Vijay Raghavan said that - the Defence Technology Council, should determine the country’s defence technology roadmap and decide on major projects and their execution.

Background:
• The committee was set up by the government last year to review the functioning of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and is learnt to have submitted its report this month.

What is the Defence Technology Council?
• The Defence Technology Council (DTC) in India is a top body proposed by an expert committee led by the former principal scientific advisor, Prof K Vijay Raghavan.
• The DTC is chaired by the Prime Minister, with the Defence Minister and the National Security Advisor as its Vice Presidents.
• It is proposed to have an executive committee chaired by the Chief of Defence Staff. The DTC is expected to determine the country’s defence technology roadmap and decide on major projects and their execution.
• The secretariat of the Defence Technology Council is proposed to be a separate department under the Defence Ministry, named the Department of Defence Science, Technology, and Innovation.
• This department, headed by a technocrat, will promote defense research and development in the academic and start-up ecosystem.

Recommendations of the Vijay Raghavan Committee
• At present, DRDO remains engaged in all aspects, from research to development to production, in its projects.
• The Vijay Raghavan committee has observed that the DRDO should focus on its original goal of research and development for defence.
• It should refrain from involving itself in productization, production cycles, and product management, tasks that are more suitable for the private sector.
• The committee recommended there are certain areas whre DRDO shouldn’t get into such as drone development.
• There is a necessity to identify expertise within India and internationally for various technologies. Every defence solution to a problem doesn’t have to only come from DRDO. This is precisely where the committee believes the Defence Technology Council would play a pivotal role in identifying the right players for specific defence technologies.