India's annual defence production has reached an all-time high of Rs 1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025-26, marking a significant 15.6 per cent growth over the previous fiscal year. This achievement reflects a 110 per cent increase since 2020-21 and highlights the country's expanding defence industrial base, driven by policy support and increased private sector participation.
'The share of the private sector is at its all-time high of around Rs 42,000 crore in FY26, reflecting its expanding role in the defence ecosystem.'
'DRDO has been directed to license missile technologies to the private sector.'
India's defence exports reached a record high of Rs 38,424 crore in fiscal year 2025-26, marking a significant increase of over 62 per cent compared to the previous year, according to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
Indian defence stocks have seen an average year-on-year gain of 67 per cent, driven by renewed interest following 'Operation Sindoor' and a broader increase in global geopolitical tensions, with the combined market capitalisation of 18 firms increasing by approximately 2.3 trillion.
Defence Procurement Manual 2025 lays down the guiding principles for revenue procurements in the defence ministry worth around 1 trillion in a financial year.
Goldman Sachs is bullish about Indian aerospace and defence, preferring private companies over public sector units (PSUs) as the country ramps up its export target for the sector to Rs 50,000 crore by FY29 from Rs 23,600 crore last year. The American investment bank's top 'buy' recommendations include Solar Industries, Bharat Electronics, Data Patterns and PTC Industries, while Bharat Dynamics is rated 'sell'.
The Indian government outlines its futuristic defence programme, Sudarshan Chakra Mission, focusing on indigenous development, predictive technologies, and targeted counter-action systems to enhance national security.
'An HAL-private sector tieup is a possibility.'
We need to equip the Indian Armed Forces, not 'commercial' as Trump wants, but 'operationally' looking at growing Chinese military capabilities, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
HAL, BEL and MDL feature on Sipri's list of the 100 largest arms producers in the world.
The Positive Indigenisation List includes Rs 715 crore worth of high-end materials and spares, the import of which will be permitted only until a date specified for each. After each one's import deadline elapses, it will have to be procured from the Indian industry.
the defence ministry told Parliament on Monday that foreign procurement in defence has risen to Rs 50,061 crore (Rs 500.61 billion) in 2021-2022 from Rs 37,030 crore (Rs 370.30 billion) in 2017-2018.
As part of the "Atmanirbhar Bharat" (self-reliant India) package, the central government had announced on May 16 last year that it would improve autonomy, accountability and efficiency in ordnance supplies by corporatisation of the OFB.
The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict has demonstrated the integration of multiple forces in domains of air, land, sea, cyber, information and space, and how they are "united" to achieve the goal, Vice Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal A P Singh, said on Friday.
DRDO's failures over the decades have contributed significantly to India becoming the world's biggest weapons importer, points out Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
The ban on import of 101 items is a big step towards an Atma Nirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India). This list of negative items contains not only small items but weapon systems of high and critical technology. More such items will be added to this list shortly which will save crores of rupees in imports, the defence minister said.
Action has been taken according to a memorandum that requires 'periodic review of performance of government servants'.
"Only time will tell us about that but I am quite sure that if a youngster who has, as you said, got brainwashed (into terrorism), joins the services under the scheme and stays with us for four years, I am sure he will be a different person and probably more of an Indian than a radical as you brought out," the air marshal told reporters.
GSOMIA does not cover the exchange of classified information with Indian private industry. Washington wanted this covered too, given New Delhi's emphasis on the proposed 'strategic partnership' model of procurement.
The CAG also observed that the Indian Navy's auxiliary vessel strength was not increasing incommensurate with the rise in its combat fleet.
"The amended second draft (known as DAP) has since been finalised by the review committee driven by tenets of defence reforms announced as part of the 'Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan' and has been placed in the public domain," the ministry said.
The Ministry of Defence has decided to retain decades-old barriers against allowing India's private sector a meaningful role in defence production. Minister of State for Defence Production MM Pallam Raju has revealed that the MoD had scrapped its plan to nominate leading defence players from the private sector as Raksha Udyog Ratnas (RuRs), or Champions of Defence Industry, thus granting them the same status as Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) and Ordnance Factories
Even as Chinese troops continue squatting on territory that we claim as our own -- this was the lowest allocation for defence in percentage terms since the 1950s, reveals Ajai Shukla.
'The procurement cycle still consumes too much time; little has changed.'
In what is seen as a significant move, the DAP featured measures to reduce delay in procurement of essential items by the three services as it proposed a new enabling provision to acquire them through capital budget under a simplified procedure in a time-bound manner.
Though the government says public and private shipyards compete on equal terms, public shipyards feast at the high table with the defence ministry, with only scraps being tossed to private shipbuilders.
Defence Minister A K Antony has asked the Navy and the DRDO to maintain highest safety standards in the nuclear submarine fleet of the country after the mishap at the site of an under-construction vessel at Vishakhapatnam in which one person was killed.
The prospects of India becoming a credible manufacturer of defence platforms or major weapon systems for export are remote, says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
Defence minister claims MoD 'alive and kicking' after 'getting the weeds out'.
The defence ministry has lost sight of what it intended to achieve -- which was to nurture private defence firms that would compete on equal terms with the 9 defence PSUs and the 41 Ordnance Factory Board factories.
Will private firms really boost Make in India in the defence sector? Ajai Shukla seeks answers.
The end goal of defence procurement should be not import or indeginisation but securing the country through able and ready armed forces, says Air Marshal P V Athawale (retd)
'Ex-servicemen engineers and technicians are true professionals worthy of being 'Make in India' agents. They can be trusted to bring long term dividends -- it is in their character to be long term loyalists!' says Air Marshal P V Athawale (Retd).
'The cost of the Rafale contract will be substantially lower than being talked about.' 'If you throw away the price they demand, our coffers will soon become empty.' 'When it comes to spending the nation's money I am very careful and stingy.'
As the DefenceExpo gets underway in Goa, Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd) says the proposed Defence Procurement Procedure 2016 should ensure that the Indian defence industry is on the path to design, develop and make in India.
The finance minister hiked the total defence expenditure from Rs 203,672 crore in FY 2013-2014 to Rs 229,000 crore for FY 2014-2015. Though the increase appears substantial, it is insufficient to undertake the military modernisation necessary to meet the emerging threats, feels Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
