The Triumph Of Sovereignty: Make-In-India Reshapes National Defense

What people have been working on with the Make-in-India defense program seems to be paying off now.

Major General V K Sharma, ADG (Procurement), says that starting with the next fiscal year, the Indian Army will not bring in any ammo from other countries.

“In the next financial year (2025-26), we will not have any import of ammunition, other than in cases where the quantity is too low and it is not economical for the industry to manufacture them,” said Sharma.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) says that India is the world’s biggest importer of arms. Of the 175 kinds of ammunition that India needs, 150 have been found in India.

Every year, the Indian Army buys ammo worth between Rs 8,000 crore and Rs 6,000 crore. Most of this ammunition will now be made in India.

Only 5 to 10 percent of the ammunition needed is now coming from other countries, which shows that the five good indigenization lists are having an effect.

Positive indigenization lists are things that

the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) says India can make itself and will not buy from other countries.

The Ordnance Factory Boards were turned into corporations in 2021. Since then, many private companies have come forward with their products and built munitions parks in the country.

The largest ammunition factory in Asia was opened by Adani in Kanpur two months ago, in February 2024. For the security forces, the plant will make thousands of artillery shells, rockets, small and big bullets, and missiles.

Tata has also started putting together the Airbus C-295 transport plane. Other than the government-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Tata is India’s first private airplane manufacturer.