The Ministry of Defense wants to expand the scope of its flagship Innovations for Defense Excellence (iDEX) program and has sought additional funds from the Finance Ministry to continue, The Indian Express has learnt.
According to senior government officials, the Department of Defense (DDP) under the Ministry of Defense has already completed nearly 90% of the total `498.78 crore sanctioned for the program for a period of five years – from 2021-22 to 2025-26. . The iDEX program aims to provide financial support to around 300 start-ups, MSMEs and individual founders and about 20 partner incubators to develop niche defense and aerospace technologies.
According to official information, till August this year, the purchase of 37 products successfully developed under IDEX worth `2,370 billion has been approved, of which contracts for the purchase of 21 products worth `800 crore have been signed. More challenges are presented under iDEX. According to the data, more than 300 of them have been declared as iDEX winners.
Earlier this month, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh at an event said that 26 products have been built under the IDEX programme, with purchase orders worth over Rs 1,000 crore.
Senior government officials said that the lack of funding is consistent with the strong and fast implementation of the program and that its success has encouraged its expansion and that it needs additional funds and other resources, including staff.
The official said that nearly 90% of the approved budget expenditure has already been committed against ongoing projects, adding that to continue signing contracts with IDEX winners, additional funds of `497.15 crore are required.
The official added that the commitment of additional funds from the government is essential to continue IDEX’s engagement with startups and this was also highlighted in a recent communication with the Ministry of Finance by Defense Secretary Giridhar Aramane.
The official said the need for increased funding was also recommended by the Revised Cost Committee (RCC) in 2023 and the process of third-party evaluation of the plan has started to be completed this financial year.
Once approved, it will take the total cost of the central sector scheme to around `996 crore.
Initially, the grant given to iDEX winners was `1.5 crore, but the IDEX program was later expanded to IDEX Prime, with the grant increasing from `1.5 crore to `10 crore. This is because several stakeholders felt that despite having technical capabilities and know-how, the `1.5 crore ceiling was a barrier to developing advanced and complex systems in the niche domain of defense and aerospace.
Earlier this year, the Minister of Defense launched another program – Acing Development of Innovative Technologies and the IDEX program (ADITI) – to promote innovations in critical defense technologies and strategies where startups are eligible to receive a government grant up to. `25 crore for their efforts in research, development and innovation in defense technology.
The ADITI program worth `750 crore for the period 2023-24 to 2025-26 falls under the IDEX framework and aims to develop about 30 critical and strategic deep technologies during the proposed period, while bridging the gap between the expectations and requirements of DEX. the modern Armed Forces and capabilities of the defense innovation ecosystem.
According to a government statement, in the first edition of ADITI, 17 challenges – three for the Indian Army, five for the Navy and the Indian Air Force and four for the Defense Space Agency – were launched.
Earlier this month, Singh launched ADITI 2.0, which has 19 challenges from the military and allied organizations in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI), quantum technology, military communications, anti-drone systems developed for military platforms and adaptive camouflage among others.
The program provides funding of up to `25 crore to IDEX winners, focusing on key technology areas that are critical to strengthening the country’s defense ecosystem.
He also launched the 12th edition of the Defense India Start-up Challenges (DISC 12), which presented 41 challenges across key technology domains, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), AI, networking and communication, with grants up to -`1.5 crore.
To provide impetus to the iDEX program, DISC is launched in collaboration with the Atal Innovation Mission, which aims to support startups, MSMEs, innovators to create prototypes and commercialize products or solutions in defense and national security.
According to the Defense Minister, iDEX has received over 9,000 applications so far, and is currently working with 450 startups and MSMEs.