Accord with Naga armed groups soon: Ravi

A proposed accord with Naga armed groups is expected to be concluded soon, Deputy National Security Adviser R N Ravi said Saturday.

"It's nearing conclusion with all. In fact, there is nobody left out. Everyone is part of it.

"There are eight armed groups which are now talking to Government of India. NSCN (I-M) plus seven others, they are all part of it. There is no one left out," Ravi, who has been involved in the process, told reporters here.

The efforts to conclude the accord are expected to fructify "soon", he said.

He was speaking on the sidelines of a national conference on 'Self Reliance in Defence Manufacturing', organised by the Forum for Integrated National Security (FINS).

In his address to the conference, Ravi said the Make in India initiative of the government is guided by an approach of building strength, especially when it comes to national security, against the earlier one of upgrading capacities based on threats.

"Shukracharya in his Shukraneeti says if you are strong, you have friends around. If you are weak, you have enemies around. If you are weak, weakness invites aggression. If you are strong, you are secure.

"You cannot be strong if you just keep measuring from time to time where are your threats emanating from. Because, threats are not under your control... Strength is yours. You need to build that strength," he said.

"The whole thrust in Make in India is nothing but a simple translation of this Shukraneeti. Be strong. National security from the perspective of strength," he said.

Observing that there has been general sense among the Indians, "of awakening to its destiny that we can and we must," in the last four and half years, he said it has to be translated on the ground.

Working towards technology innovation for national security, the country must expand to areas beyond the conventional and catch up fast in space and cyber, he said.

The country needs to have an edge in digital technology as digital infrastructure includes various areas like economy, defence and growth, he said.

G Satheesh Reddy, Chairman, DRDO and Secretary, Department of Defence R &D, said industry and also start-ups are being promoted in a big way.

"That's why we are promoting the industry in a big way. Both start-ups and the established industries. Start-ups for promoting innovations in a big way..," he said.

Any industry which has got a good idea or a technology can work with DRDO, Reddy added.