CMA Hosts 4th Edition of Annual Defence Study Tour at CSIO Chandigarh
The Chandigarh Management Association (CMA), in collaboration with the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO-CSIR), Chandigarh, organized the 4th edition of its annual interactive programme with a distinguished delegation from the College of Defence Management (CDM), Secunderabad.
The delegation, led by Brigadier Manoj Kumar Sharma, comprised 20 senior Army Colonels currently on a study tour to premier institutions across India. Their visit aimed to understand the role of leading organizations in strengthening the country’s management, research, and technological ecosystem.
The session was presided over by Prof. Shantanu Bhattacharya, Director, CSIO-CSIR. From CMA, the event was represented by President Sukhwinder Singh, General Secretary Dr. Jatinderpal Singh Sehdev, and Executive Members Prof. Baldev Sachdeva and Gurcharan Singh Thukral.
The programme began with a welcome address by President Sukhwinder Singh, who greeted the visiting officers and highlighted CMA’s mission of promoting management excellence, leadership development, and industry–academia collaboration in the region. Dr. Jatinderpal Singh Sehdev gave a comprehensive overview of CMA’s professional initiatives under the aegis of All India Management Association (AIMA), emphasizing the body’s role in leadership building, professional networking, and knowledge-sharing platforms that bridge the corporate, academic, and defence sectors.
The highlight of the visit was an in-depth presentation by CSIO, where Prof. Bhattacharya and his team showcased CSIO’s innovations, indigenous technologies, and defence-focused research projects. The officers were introduced to cutting-edge scientific instruments and systems being developed for India’s defence forces, reflecting the nation’s pursuit of self-reliance and Atmanirbhar Bharat in defence preparedness.
This year’s edition carried special strategic relevance. In light of the global supply chain disruptions triggered by the Russia–Ukraine war and the prevailing uncertainties in US-led defence sourcing, the delegation emphasized that India must embed joint commitments at the development phase itself. As end users across all three Armed Forces, they highlighted the need for closer integration between R&D institutions, industry, and defence leadership to reduce lead times and ensure that prototype innovations can be transitioned into commercially deployable systems in shorter spans.
The interaction was marked by a rich exchange of ideas, where defence officers appreciated CMA’s efforts in strengthening management practices and applauded CSIO’s pioneering role in delivering indigenous, strategically important technological solutions.
The session concluded on a note of mutual appreciation and commitment to sustained collaboration, with CMA reaffirming its role as a bridge between defence, academia, and industry, and CSIO reiterating its vision of contributing to India’s technological and strategic self-reliance.
This initiative, facilitated under the guidance of AIMA, reflects the association’s vision of fostering cross-sectoral engagements, knowledge partnerships, and nation-building through collaborative leadership.
