28.10.26 – By NewsIP Bureau – New Delhi – Department of Defence Production (DDP), Ministry of Defence, Government of India, and Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) in association with Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) and Knowledge Partner Deloitte organised the National Defence Talent & Capability Conclave 2026 recently in New Delhi.
The conclave was addressed by Shri Sanjeev Kumar, Secretary, DDP; Shri K. Moses Chalai, Secretary, Department of Public Enterprises (DPE); PESB Members – Shri Alkesh Kumar Sharma and Shri Roop Narayan Sunkar; and Shri Atul Sobti, DG, SCOPE, in the presence of Shri Vijay Namdeorao Zade, Joint Secretary; Smt. Manisha Chandra, Joint Secretary; and Smt. Meera Mohanty, Joint Secretary from DDP.
First-of-its-kind Conclave Brings Together 16 DPSUs and Private Defence Majors
With over 50 participants, the conclave marked a first-of-its-kind initiative to bring together key stakeholders from the defence public sector and private industry to deliberate on talent development and future-ready leadership in India’s defence ecosystem. It brought together CMDs & Directors of 16 Defence PSUs and leaders from private defence industry.
Leading private defence organisations including Tata Advanced Systems Ltd., L&T Precision Engineering & Systems, Kalyani Strategic Systems Ltd., and Astra Microwave Products Ltd. participated. During the panel discussion, industry leaders shared suggestions on nurturing young talent, promoting multidisciplinary skills, AI adoption, enhancing industry-academia collaboration, and providing early leadership opportunities to build a future-ready defence workforce.
Secretary DDP and DPE Emphasise Manpower and Talent Expansion
Shri Sanjeev Kumar in his address stated that the expanding defence sector would require a corresponding expansion of its talent pool. Emphasising human resource development, he underscored the need to identify and nurture talent and provide employees with meaningful roles and responsibilities from an early stage.
Shri K. Moses Chalai emphasised that sustaining growth in the defence sector requires a strong focus on production, supply chains, value chains, technology and, above all, manpower development.
Shri Alkesh Kumar Sharma said that the leadership pipeline can be strengthened by giving talent cross-functional assignments and formal roles in different functions. Shri Roop Narayan Sunkar highlighted that leadership development in the defence sector must extend beyond manufacturing to encompass functions such as legal and finance, emphasising the importance of bringing together professionals from diverse disciplines for holistic leadership development.
Shri Atul Sobti highlighted the roundtable as a first-of-its-kind initiative bringing together public and private sector defence organisations, emphasising a culture of competing, collaborating and coexisting while nurturing leaders with strategic foresight and deep technical expertise.
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