Lucknow to host DefExpo India 2020, confirms Defence Ministry

NEW DELHI: The Defence Ministry on Sunday announced that the 11th edition of the biennial DefExpo will be held in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, in 2020. It may be recalled that the show was held in Chennai in 2018 and Uttar Pradesh is going to host the biennial show for the first time ever.

"The 11th edition #DEFEXPO2020 will be held in Lucknow (U.P.) from February 5th to 8th, 2020. The mega expo will showcase India`s Defence Manufacturing Prowess. With the presence of strong defence industrial infra, U.P. is an attractive destination for defence investment," a tweet by the Raksha Mantri Office (RMO) on Sunday said.

The 11th DEFEXPO INDIA- 2020 TO BE HELD IN LUCKNOW, Uttar Pradesh. DefExpo Exhibitions offer an excellent opportunity to show case the capabilities of the Indian Defence Industry and to promote their export potential. #DefExpo2020 pic.twitter.com/fVzz6n35aQ — रक्षा मंत्री कार्यालय/ RMO India (@DefenceMinIndia) July 21, 2019

The Expo is an excellent opportunity for the Indian defence industry to showcase its capabilities to the world and leverage its potential to export the defence equipment to different parts of the world.

The theme of the DefExpo India- 2020 will be 'India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub' and focus will be on 'Digital Transformation of Defence'.

The DefExpo also offers an opportunity to Indian firms to get engaged in Business-to-Business (B2B) interaction with senior foreign delegations. It also facilitates Government-to-Government (G2G) meetings and the signing of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs).

Uttar Pradesh boasts of a strong defence industrial infrastructure, including four units of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd at Lucknow, Kanpur, Korwa and Naini (Prayagraj), nine ordnance factory units, including Kanpur, Korwa, Shahjahanpur, Firozabad and one unit of Bharat Electronics Limited at Ghaziabad. Uttar Pradesh is also set to get one of the two Defence Industrial Corridors (DICs) of the country.

The corridor will encourage Defence Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and play an important role in promoting Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs).