BEL is among the elite group of Public Sector Undertakings, which has been conferred the Navratna status. The growth of the company mirrors the advances in defence electronics in India. BEL has achieved many milestones over the years. The Akash Air Defence Weapon System is a shining example of BEL’s indigenous design, development and manufacturing drive. The Coastal Surveillance System developed for strengthening surveillance of India’s over-7,500-km-long coastline is being offered to friendly countries. BEL has made giant strides in Radars with the induction of Weapon Locating Radar and 3D Tactical Control Radar. Mr V K Krishna Menon, Defence Minister, Inaugurating the Bangalore Unit of BEL, as Mr B V Baliga, Managing Director (second from left), BEL, looks on. Though Defence is its mainstay, BEL has made a mark in non-Defence too. BEL’s tamper-proof Electronic Voting Machines have revolutionised the voting system in India, making the process transparent and tamper-proof. When the country wanted its services the most, BEL manufactured 30,000 ICU Ventilators in a record time to help the Government combat the Covid pandemic. BEL has been doing its bit to promote the Government’s Make in India initiative by laying strong thrust on in-house R&D and indigenisation, outsourcing from Indian private industries, Public-Private Partnerships, Joint Ventures, capacity expansion and modernisation. The company has created a ‘Make in India Cell’ to implement its outsourcing policy. VHF Transceiver (MF843):This VHF Transceiver was made in 1958. Operating in the Frequency band of 70-88 MHz, this 20W Radio had 6 Preset Channels Mr K C Pant, Defence Minister, Inaugurating BEL’s Kotdwara Unit BEL aims to increase its non-defence share in the overall business. Some of the areas the company is focussing on include solutions for the Civil Aviation sector, Anti Drone Systems, Satellite Assembly & Integration, Solar, Railway & Metro solutions, Network & Cyber Security solutions, Energy Storage products for Electric Vehicles, Homeland Security & Smart Cities, Medical Electronics, Artificial Intelligence, etc. BEL is fast expanding its global presence. All-out efforts are being made to tap new export markets across the globe. In a bid to develop new markets in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and friendly foreign countries (FFCs), BEL has operationalised overseas marketing offices in Oman, Vietnam, Sri Lanka. BEL has also expanded its Singapore and New York Regional Offices to handle marketing activities. The company has identified Exports & Offsets as one of its thrust areas.