Corporatisation of Ordnance Factory Board

The government has recently decided to corporatize the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB). It means converting a subordinate office of Ministry of Defence (MoD) into 100 per cent Government owned corporate entities.

Highlights

• For this purpose, Government has created an Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM), that will be chaired by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh.
• EGoM will oversee and guide the entire process including the transition support and redeployment plan of employees.

Terms of Reference

The Terms of Reference (ToR) of the EGoM include:

• Decision to convert OFB into a single or multiple Defence Public Sector Undertaking (DPSU).
• Matters of salary and pension of existing employees.
• Financial support provided to the entity/entities to make them economically viable and self-reliant.
• Grandfathering of orders already being executed by OFB.
• Treatment for land assets of OFB.

About Ordinance Factory Board (OFB)

OFB is a Government agency which is controlled by department of defence production (DDP) under Ministry of Defence (MoD), Government of India. It is involved in research, development and production in the areas of air, land and sea systems. It is also involved in testing and logistics. OFB comprised of 41 ordnance factories and 9 training institutes.

Key facts to remember

• 18 March is celebrated as the Ordnance Factory Day in India, every year
• It is the largest government-operated production organisation in the World.
• OFB is also the 35th largest defence equipment manufacturer in the world and 2nd largest in Asia.

Month: Current Affairs - September, 2020