This was discussed in a meeting chaired by defence minister Rajnath Singh on 8 July on targets to be achieved by India by 2047 as part of the Narendra Modi government’s Vision@2047. Other major targets discussed at the meeting were increasing the number of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the defence sector to 45,000 from 15,000 at present.

India’s defence exports in 2020-21 stood at Rs 13,000 crore, Sanjay Jaju, additional secretary (defence production), said. The Rs 2.6 lakh crore target by 2047 would hence amount to increasing the exports by nearly 20 times, the top source in the government said.

Indian defence exports have grown almost six times from Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 9,000 crore in the past five years, in which the participation of the private sector stands at 90 per cent, as per ministry of defence data. These exports are broadly going to 84 countries. A Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report of 2020 stated that India stands in the list of the top 25 countries in defence exports.

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This was discussed in a meeting chaired by defence minister Rajnath Singh on Friday on targets to be achieved by India by 2047 as part of the Narendra Modi government’s Vision@2047. Other major targets discussed at the meeting were increasing the number of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the defence sector to 45,000 from 15,000 at present.

Government sources said what also featured in the discussions with the minister was increasing India’s current market share in the space economy to 15 per cent by 2047 from the current two per cent. They added that India is aiming to be a $1 trillion market by 2047, and this will involve a big investment in the space startup ecosystem.

India’s defence exports in 2020-21 stood at Rs 13,000 crore, Sanjay Jaju, additional secretary (defence production), said on Friday. The Rs 2.6 lakh crore target by 2047 would hence amount to increasing the exports by nearly 20 times, the top source in the government said.

“Increasing defence exports continues to be the top priority of the government and a target of Rs 35,000 crore to Rs 40,000 crore by 2024-25 has been fixed,” the source added. The export of the LCA Tejas of HAL and Brahmos supersonic cruise missiles are the two major focus areas for exports with multiple countries showing interest in them.

The defence ministry is also working on a defence production and export promotion policy, which is learnt to be in its final stages. India is looking at exporting Advanced Light Helicopters Mark III to the Philippines and the Light Combat Aircraft Tejas to Malaysia. The talks between the two countries are at an advanced stage.

India has offered to set up a production line to manufacture LCA and choppers in Egypt, and plans to explore the African market for exports, the source quoted earlier told News18. India also recently inked a $375 million deal for the supply of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines. Indonesia is also a potential customer for the Brahmos and talks are ongoing between the two countries.

Ten sectoral groups of secretaries (SGoS) spanning all sectors have been working on preparing a set of targets and a roadmap to achieve them by 2047. One of the sectoral groups is on security and foreign affairs. This is the Modi government’s big roadmap for India’s 100th year of Independence.

Indian defence exports have grown almost six times from Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 9,000 crore in the past five years, in which the participation of the private sector stands at 90 per cent, as per ministry of defence data. These exports are broadly going to 84 countries. A Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report of 2020 stated that India stands in the list of the top 25 countries in defence exports.

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The Indian security establishment is keeping a close eye on the Russia-Ukraine developments and calculating the immediate and long-term impact on the country’s defence capabilities.

About 70 per cent of Indian defence equipment are of Russian origin. However, India procures many parts of the Russian systems from Ukraine. This is because several manufacturing hubs remained with Ukraine after USSR disintegrated.

One of the main problems facing Indian forces has been servicing and maintenance of Russian military equipment since spare parts are in short supply and have to be imported not just from Russia and Ukraine but from other countries as well.

Indigenisation

Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, India issued a list of 107 sub-systems, on 24 March, that are to be banned from import and indigenised over the next six years. Several of the items on the list are meant for T-90 and T 72 tanks, warships, helicopters, infantry combat vehicles, missiles, ammunition and radars among others, all of which are procured from either Russia or Ukraine.

The subsystems or strategically-important line-replacement units – will now be “indigenised”, or procured only from the Indian industry. The import of these products will be phased out from December 2022 to the end of 2028.

Incidentally, both India and Russia were already working on a deal to indigenously manufacture the spares here through tie-ups, something which had come up for detailed discussion in 2019 between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russia President Vladimir Putin.

The government had, in December 2021, issued the first positive indigenisation list of subsystems, assemblies, subassemblies and other components.

Two thousand and five hundred imported items from that list have already been indigenised and the other 351 will stop being imported in the next three years.

Russian-origin tanks

Amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine where the anti-tank missiles have achieved significant success against armour, the Indian Army is going to incorporate the lessons of the conflict in the design of its futuristic main battle tank.

The Indian Army has been one of the biggest users of Russian armour including the T-90, T-72 and BMP-series infantry combat vehicles which are the mainstay of the force.

In the Ukraine-Russia conflict, reports from the war zone have suggested that the Ukrainians have extensively used anti-tank guided missiles to exploit the weakness of the Russian armoured vehicles and achieved significant success too.

Indian armed forces have been keeping a close eye on the developments on the battlefield as a lot of equipment is common including the tanks being used there.

The inputs are being analysed and the lessons would be incorporated into the design of the futuristic main battle tanks that would be produced and used by the Indian Army in coming years.

The Indian Army earlier used to deploy these tanks only along the desert and plain borders with Pakistan but they have now become the face of Indian resolve along the China border too as large numbers are deployed there from Ladakh to Sikkim.

In the Russia-Ukraine war going on for around 46 days now, a number of European and North American nations are supplying anti-tank and anti-aircraft equipment such as the Carl Gustaf anti-tank rocket launchers, NLAWs and AT-4.

The design of the tanks is at least three to four decades old but the anti-tank missiles and rockets have been designed as per the latest requirements and have an upper hand in the present scenario.

The Indian designers would make an attempt to offset that advance in the futuristic main battle tanks that would be built some years from now, they said.

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“The basic principle of security is that you should have your own customised and unique system, only then it will help you. If ten countries have the same type of defence equipment, then your armies will have no uniqueness. Uniqueness and surprise element can be brought only if the equipment is developed in your own country.”

“When we bring weapons from outside, it’s process is so long that by the time they reach our security forces, many of them have become outdated,” Modi stated.

He encouraged the industry to leverage India’s information technology prowess, calling it country’s “great strength”. “The more we use this power in our defence, the more confident we will be in our security.” Citing the example of cyber security, he said, even it has become a “weapon of war” and “a matter of national security”.

He said that this year’s budget “has a blueprint for developing a vibrant ecosystem from research, design and development to manufacturing within the country” and has set aside nearly 70 per cent of the capital allocation for the domestic industry. He mentioned that since nearly 200 items were put under negative imports list in the last two years contracts worth Rs 54 thousand crore have been signed for domestic procurement, and apart from that the “the procurement process related to equipment worth more than Rs 4.5 lakh crore is also in different stages.” He said a third positive indigenisation list will be announced soon.

The government, he said, has issued 350 new industrial licences for defence manufacturing in the last seven years, compared to 200 such licences that were issued between 2001 and 2014.

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During the short meeting, held ‘virtually,’ as the defence minister was down with Covid, the issue of procurement under Buy (Global) category came up for discussion during the DAC meeting. It was decided to firmly push indigenisation or as the government said, Atmanirbharata. The Army plan to buy QR SAMs or Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missiles has been turned from a Buy Global to a Buy Indian order. This means that only Indian firms will be able to supply the three regiments of QR SAMs to the Army’s air-defence system.

A similar decision has been taken for the Articulated All Terrain Vehicles which can be used in high-altitude areas. All 18 of them will be purchased from Indian vendors. This was initially a Buy Global case. The decision about light machine guns for the Army followed a similar pattern. This will also be Buy and Make Indian.

There are, of course, weaponry that are urgently needed and cannot be immediately made in India like tank engines, gun-missile systems, high-quality rifles, not to speak of fighter planes like the Rafale. These issues will again come up for discussion in the next DAC meetings on January 20 and 21.

Under the Buy (Global) category, procurement is done directly from the foreign Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM). The decision taken will not impact deals already inked under the Buy (Global) route, those being pursued under the government-to-government route and the Foreign Military sales (FMS) route with the US.

Foreign OEMs are now welcome to tie up with Indian firms or set up their own factories to not only supply the Indian military but also for other countries.

The defence services were earlier asked to prepare a list of procurement plans from abroad that could be replaced by indigenous items. Accordingly, each service — Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard — had come forward with a list of such items.

The items in question

One mega deal in this list was the procurement of 14 twin-engine helicopters, for which French firm Airbus was the prime contender. A decision has been taken to shelve this project in favour of the naval utility helicopter (NUH) of the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). However, it was not immediately clear what happened to the $3 billion project of the Navy to procure 111 new helicopters of the same class (that is, NUHs).

The Army will now go in for indigenous ATVs that will come handy in both the desert and mountains.

A project to acquire short range missiles from abroad has also been shelved in favour of the Make in India route.

Push for Make in India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh have been emphasising on indigenous defence products. These issues came up for discussion multiple times and the forces were also amenable to this, since alternate items were already available domestically and foreign companies were willing to set up facilities in the country.

Singh, in his talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu, made it clear that the way forward was Make in India. Similarly, during his meeting with French Defence Minister Florence Parly, Singh had called on French firms to “either collaborate with Indian companies or simply produce in India”.

This initiative from the government comes at a time when the Centre is coming up with the new Defence Production and Export Promotion Policy which will lay down the way ahead for strengthening defence production within the country and help in their export to friendly foreign countries.

The initiative came after Prime Minister Modi took a review meeting with the Defence Ministry officials including the then Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat where it was felt that strong measures will have to be taken to ensure that country moves firmly towards Aatmanirbhar Bharat in the defence sector. After the meeting took place, an Additional Secretary-rank officer of the Defence Ministry wrote a note to the three Services saying that “All stakeholders may take an in-principle call that no import of defence items is going forward.”

The Prime Minister has been personally reviewing the progress of Make in India in the defence sector and has from time to time asked officials in both services and the Defence Ministry to ensure that more steps are taken to promote Make in India in defence.

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