While many areas compete for resources, defence, education, and adaptation deserve focus for maximum impact, suggests Laveesh Bhandari.
The Indian government is planning to develop an unmanned combat search and rescue aircraft for the Indian Air Force, designed to operate autonomously and in challenging terrains.
Defence Procurement Manual 2025 lays down the guiding principles for revenue procurements in the defence ministry worth around 1 trillion in a financial year.
Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan urges Indian startups to focus on deep technology and advanced manufacturing to ensure strategic autonomy.
AI reduces the time taken to find a target and launch a strike. This has led to a major increase in the pace of the conflict, with one report mentioning nearly 900 strikes launched on Iranian targets in the first 12 hours of an operation.
Larsen & Toubro Ltd (L&T) is deepening its push into data centres and defence manufacturing while keeping an eye on emerging opportunities in nuclear and thermal power, chairman and managing director SN Subrahmanyan said. The engineering and construction conglomerate has invested around Rs 2,200 crore in data centres, with 32 megawatts (Mw) already operational.
A Delhi court recently acquitted five accused, including an army personnel and a Border Security Force personnel, in an espionage case. While acquitting the accused persons, the court flagged serious lapses in the investigation.
If TVK MLAs and ministers are perceived as clean, or demonstrably cleaner than their predecessors, the credibility dividend will be enormous. The voter will feel rewarded, points out Ramesh Menon.
The Indian defence ministry has initiated a project to indigenously design and develop a 1000-kg aerial bomb for the Indian Air Force (IAF), aiming to enhance self-reliance in the defence sector.
Hyderabad Police Commissioner V C Sajjanar has proposed a Joint Working Group with the RBI and banks to address the issue of mule bank accounts used in cyber fraud. The proposal follows 'Operation Octopus,' which exposed vulnerabilities in KYC verification. Sajjanar also recommended strict directives for banks to fix accountability and adopt advanced technology to detect suspicious transactions.
The 515 Army Base Workshop in Bengaluru has signed multiple strategic MoUs to bolster indigenous drone manufacturing and ecosystem resilience, marking a significant step towards modernisation and self-reliance in unmanned systems.
The United States' historical strategic alignment with Pakistan, dating back to the Cold War, has consistently aimed to create a political and military parity with India, despite India's significantly larger size and resources. This long-standing relationship continues to influence regional dynamics, particularly in West Asia and the Indo-Pacific.
In a region increasingly shaped by competition and coercion, such collaboration strengthens security without confrontation, builds capacity without dependency and promotes order without domination, points out Dr Kumar.
The 15th India-Vietnam Defence Dialogue signalled a move from routine talks to deeper cooperation, with new deals on submarine rescue and defence industry to support stability in the Indo-Pacific, notes Dr Rajaram Panda.
After declining to a three-year low in FY24, the private sector investment is expected to fall further in the current financial year, India Ratings said in a research note.. The investments in the private sector are likely to plummet to below 11 per cent of the GDP in FY25, based on the trends from the latest national accounts data and company fillings, it noted.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host Russian President Vladimir Putin for a private dinner and summit, focusing on defence, trade, and geopolitical issues, including the Ukraine conflict and the impact of US sanctions.
'If we want to pivot meaningfully from a services-driven economy to a technology and manufacturing-led one.'
'The tools of warfare are changing. The MoD must deepen its engagement with technology thinkers that can present compelling visions of where warfare may be heading.'
The presence of the private sector at a prestigious military training institution is an important acknowledgement of its growing capabilities in designing and manufacturing cutting edge aerospace and defence equipment, reports Ajai Shukla.
Eminent historian and academic K.N. Panikkar, known for his Marxist interpretation of history and advocacy for secularism, has passed away at the age of 90. His contributions to historical research and defence of secular values are widely recognised.
The move towards indigenisation of defence procurement creates new opportunities for India's military industrial sector. The Government of India (GoI) has so far released five lists of items for positive indigenisation - these should be manufactured in India, rather than imported. Each item on these lists represents an opportunity for some local firm.
The defence minister also announced that India has taken up the challenge of developing a powerful indigenous aero-engine, adding that preparations for this critical project are now almost complete and the work will soon be visible.
'Except for extremely conservative investors, others can consider allocating 10 to 20 per cent of their portfolio to small caps.'
India's macroeconomic health is in a "relative goldilocks situation", and although the risk of higher landed oil prices, due to insurance cost surges and closure of choke points due to the brief Israel-Iran war, has receded, it is "too soon to sound the 'all clear' for the rest of the year", the Finance Ministry said on Friday.
The fiscal tilt towards capex benefits companies in investment-related sectors like capital goods, defence equipment, engineering & construction and metal & mining. The planned cut in revenue expenditure will weigh on companies in consumption sectors like FMCG, consumer durables and retail.
'We believe the truth is in the middle, and that India is at an important crossroads.'
Western Coalfields Limited (WCL) has discovered significant concentrations of rare earth elements and critical minerals in its mines in Maharashtra, potentially transforming waste material into revenue-generating resources and diversifying the company's business.
The United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said that she is taking a break after more than a decade in public life.
Restoring weighted tax deductions and adopting a petty patents regime can foster firm-level innovative activity critical for competitiveness, points out Nagesh Kumar.
India fully utilised its military modernisation budget in 2024-2025 -- the first time in five years -- and signed a record Rs 2 trillion defence contracts.
These upcoming launches carry added significance in light of setbacks suffered in recent years.
When the technology gap between China and India will remain large, cost-effective hardware of the kind that proved their worth in Operation Sindoor should be our priority, points out R Jagannathan.
A nationwide strike called by central trade unions saw a mixed response across India, impacting various sectors and states differently, with some areas experiencing disruptions while others remained largely unaffected.
The government on Wednesday approved a Rs 7,280 crore scheme to promote manufacturing of rare earth permanent magnets, a move which would help reduce India's dependence on China.
The question is no longer whether the war will expand. It has. The next few days will tell us whether the war stabilises around Hormuz or whether the Strait itself becomes the trigger for a far larger rupture. What to watch for over the next 48 hours is simple: Any move by the US toward direct naval control of the Strait; any credible Iranian attempt to disrupt or mine shipping lanes and, critically, whether energy infrastructure in the Gulf continues to be targeted.If those lines are crossed in tandem, the war will no longer be containable within the region.
'There are certain sovereign AI domains where we must build capabilities using our own data, our own language models, and make our own attempts at global models.'
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh lauded 'Operation Sindoor' as a prime example of tri-services synergy, emphasizing Pakistan's ongoing recovery from the operation's impact. He highlighted the need for coordinated defense strategies and civil-military fusion to address modern security challenges.
India's premier defence research organisation DRDO has awarded seven new projects to private entities to develop key military assets including underwater launched unmanned aerial vehicle and long-range remotely operated systems.
Reliance Defence and Germany-based Rheinmetall have agreed on a 'strategic partnership' in the field of ammunition, officials on Thursday said.
A parliamentary panel on Monday discussed resettlement policies, healthcare facilities and avenues for ex-servicemen and sought to know details about post-retirement employment prospects of former soldiers.
