Telangana showcases defence prowess as JSW unveils UAV facility
Reinforces its emergence as national defence, aerospace hub with the inauguration of JSW Group’s new UAV manufacturing unit
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Hyderabad: Telangana reinforced its emergence as a national defence and aerospace hub on Tuesday with the inauguration of JSW Group’s new Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) manufacturing facility in Maheshwaram. The event drew senior officials from the State government, defence veterans, representatives of the Army, Navy, Air Force, officials from the US Consulate, and JSW scion Parth Jindal, who is driving the conglomerate’s entry into next-generation defence technologies.
IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu called the inauguration a proud moment for Telangana, saying JSW’s decision to invest in the State reflected its rising prominence in India’s industrial landscape. Praising Parth Jindal as a “dynamic entrepreneur taking JSW to the next level,” he said the company’s trust in Telangana’s governance and industrial ecosystem demonstrated the State’s competitiveness.
The Minister recalled meeting Jindal nearly a year ago along with Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to persuade JSW to bring the project to Telangana. “We were able to convince JSW to partner with us, stay with us, and grow with us,” he said.
Sridhar Babu highlighted the rapid evolution of modern warfare, where dominance is increasingly determined not by troop strength but by speed, intelligence, and aerial technologies. “Power is shifting from mass to mass-free, from scale to speed, from boots on the ground to sensors in the sky,” he said, stressing that UAVs have become essential frontline assets.
Citing global projections, he noted that the military drone market is expected to rise from $15.6 billion today to $57.4 billion by 2030, while the broader UAV market—spanning defence, civil and commercial applications—may reach $156 billion by 2032, growing at 17 per cent annually. India’s defence UAV segment alone is projected to hit $4.4 billion by 2030, with the overall drone economy poised to reach $5 billion.
JSW is investing Rs850 crore in the new facility in partnership with US-based Shield AI, aiming to manufacture nearly 300 drones annually—“almost a drone a day,” the Minister said. Beyond industrial value, he emphasised the facility’s strategic relevance for India’s defence preparedness, technological independence, and deepening capability in avionics and electronics.
Parth Jindal described the launch as a moment of “great pride.” Calling India “the fastest-growing major economy” with 8.2 per cent GDP growth in Q2, he said the partnership with Shield AI involved one of the most complex defence negotiations undertaken in the country. The collaboration includes a rare full technology transfer, making JSW the owner of the IP required to build advanced long-endurance drones in India.
