The “Make in India” initiative has started paying rich dividends when it comes to make the nation self-sufficient in various sectors. This initiative has started leaving its mark on the growth of the domestic defence production and making India a formidable exporter of the weapons in the international market. Encouraged by the performance of the Indian defence industry in terms of quality production of the weaponry, Ministry of Defence is going to focus on the capability enhancement of the Indian Defence Preparedness in 2025 by making important inductions of the weapon systems and other devices that add to the capability of the armed forces.

The commendable indigenous defence production up to the value of 1.26 lakh crore has encouraged the government to sign contracts with the Indian producers. Not only have the Indian private sector come up to the demand expectations of the armed forces in the country but they have left their mark in the international market as there is rise of nearly 16.7 percent in the defence exports.

This demand for Indian made weaponry is going to rise due to the rise in international conflict in various countries. The previous year has witnessed many private sector players in India making investments in ammunition plants that are capable of producing varied grades of ammunition. Various plants that have come up in Maharashtra and Himachal Pradesh are responding to the demand of the European nations.

The reason being the desperation due to the Russia-Ukraine War. Depletion of the ammunition reserves in the European nations has created new buyers for the Indian ammunition producers worldwide. There has been 32.5 percent growth in defence exports in 2024.The major products that are in demand include missile, artillery guns, barrel rocket launchers, combat vehicles and other varieties of the armed vehicles and combat technologies.

The year 2024 witnessed the signing of contracts with the private sector for the supply of the weapon systems. Larsen & Toubro has been the biggest beneficiary in terms of this deal and it has entered into a defence contract of approximately rupees 7668 crore. All the three wings of the Indian Defence are procuring the indigenous weapon systems and this self-sufficiency is indeed encouraging and a welcome development for the Indian Defence Ecosystem.

As per the media reports the year 2025 will be the year of defence procurements in terms of prioritising the capabilities. The record domestic production of the Indian weaponry and the business acceleration in terms of the exports of the Indian weapon systems has made the Indian defence ecosystem full of conviction and confidence.

This self –sufficiency in Defence Preparedness will help India to redefine the geo-strategic calculus and checkmate the belligerent powers that are trying to restrict the due Indian rise in the international arena. India has been fighting a two and a half front war for quite a long time. Both China and Pakistan have been working in a pincer to indulge India so that its resources are exhausted and its rise altered.

As conventional warfare has not yielded the desired results they have been inflicting subversive wars by creating enemies from within in terms of their mercenaries. That constitutes another front of their war against India. But by raising the costs and punishing their nefarious designs by working on capacity building rendered them helpless. Rightly, the focus of the Ministry of Defence for the year 2025 is reforms that have to be comprehensive and integrating the all chains of command to checkmate the subversive stratagems of the adversary.

RK News