In his address, the Finance Minister of Punjab, Capt Kanwaljit Singh (Retd) said the initiative taken by the Army and industry for mutual benefit would also contribute to national development. Referring to the vast scope of the industrial potential available in the country, he said that along with the large scale industry the small and medium ones could also come forward to meet the varied defence requirements. He also appealed to the industry to provide suitable re-employment to Army personnel who are skilled and disciplined.

Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi, the then Western Army Chief, in his address said that the Army Commands had been authorised to meet some of the requirements at their level which would benefit and promote regional and local industries. Referring to the recommendations of the seminar, he said that these would be taken due notice at an appropriate level.

The session on information technology was well attended. From the Army's side, the Chief Signals Officer, HQ Western Command contributed to the deliberations. The Army's needs of computers, software and telecommunications were well understood by the industry.

A vast pool of those Army personnel who retire at an early age and are well trained and disciplined, is available for employment in the industry. This was the subject of the second session of the seminar. Well attended by both sides, it raised several issues for consideration by the Army and industry. While Army needs to consider giving an exposure to its personnel to industry prior to retirement, the industry should reserve a percentage of employment for ex-servicemen for mutual benefits.