Rajnath Singh inaugurates Aero India 2025 at Yelahanka; CEOs Roundtable held on 'EDGE' theme
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated Aero India 2025, Asia's biggest aerospace and defence exhibition, at Yelahanka Air Force Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka, on 10 February 2025, and addressed a CEOs Roundtable the same day.
Summary
Rajnath Singh opened the five-day Aero India 2025 at Yelahanka Air Force Station, Bengaluru, on 10 February 2025, saying 'there is no Indian security or Indian peace in isolation'. He cited the record ₹6.81 lakh crore allocation to the Defence Ministry in the Union Budget 2025-26, including ₹1.80 lakh crore for capital acquisition, with 75% of the modernisation budget again reserved for domestic procurement, and recalled his expectation that defence production would exceed ₹1.60 lakh crore and exports ₹30,000 crore by the end of 2025-26. At the CEOs Roundtable, themed 'Enabling Defence Cooperation through Global Engagement (EDGE)', he said India's defence exports had grown 31 times compared with 2013-14; OEMs from 19 countries, 35 Indian companies and 16 DPSUs took part.
Key facts
- Date and place
- 10 February 2025, Yelahanka Air Force Station, Bengaluru
- Defence allocation 2025-26
- ₹6.81 lakh crore, incl. ₹1.80 lakh crore capital acquisition
- Domestic procurement
- 75% of modernisation budget
- CEOs Roundtable theme
- Enabling Defence Cooperation through Global Engagement (EDGE)
- Export growth
- 31 times compared with 2013-14
Practice MCQs 4 questions
At which venue did Rajnath Singh inaugurate Aero India 2025 on 10 February 2025?
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Correct answer: A — Yelahanka Air Force Station, Bengaluru
Aero India 2025 was inaugurated at Yelahanka Air Force Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
What was the theme of the CEOs Roundtable held as part of Aero India 2025 on 10 February 2025?
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Correct answer: A — Enabling Defence Cooperation through Global Engagement (EDGE)
The roundtable's theme was 'Enabling Defence Cooperation through Global Engagement (EDGE)'.
At the Aero India 2025 CEOs Roundtable, Rajnath Singh said India's defence exports had grown how many times compared with 2013-14?
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Correct answer: D — 31
He said India had seen 31 times growth in defence exports in the last 10 years compared with 2013-14.
Consider the following statements from Rajnath Singh's address at the inauguration of Aero India 2025: 1. The Defence Ministry was allocated ₹6.81 lakh crore in the Union Budget 2025-26, including ₹1.80 lakh crore for capital acquisition. 2. 75% of the modernisation budget has been reserved for procurement from domestic sources. 3. He expected defence exports to surpass ₹50,000 crore by the end of 2025-26. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: B — 1 and 2 only
The allocation and the 75% domestic share are correct; the export figure he expected for 2025-26 was over ₹30,000 crore, not ₹50,000 crore.