India to become major defence exporter in 25-30 years: Rajnath Singh

The Union Defence Minister addressed the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers (SIDM), asserting that India — historically one of the world's largest arms ...

What Happened

The Union Defence Minister addressed the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers (SIDM), asserting that India — historically one of the world's largest arms importers — is on course to become the world's largest arms exporter within 25 to 30 years.
The minister attributed this transformation to sustained policy interventions under the Make in India initiative, indigenous defence production growth, and the demonstrated effectiveness of Made-in-India platforms during recent military operations.
India's defence production value has risen from approximately ₹46,000 crore in 2014 to ₹1.51 lakh crore, with the private sector contributing around ₹33,000 crore. Defence exports have grown from below ₹1,000 crore a decade ago to approximately ₹23,622 crore in FY 2024–25 — a 34-fold increase.
The government has set a target of ₹50,000 crore in defence exports by 2029 and ₹3 lakh crore in total domestic defence production by the same year.
The private sector is being urged to expand its share of defence production to at least 50 per cent within three years, up from its current contribution.

Static Topic Bridges

Make in India in Defence: Policy Framework

Launched in 2014, Make in India in the defence sector is implemented through several interlocking policy instruments: a Positive Indigenisation List (PIL) that bars imports of specified defence items, mandatory domestic procurement reservations (75 per cent of capital procurement budget reserved for domestic manufacturers), Defence Industrial Corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, and Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes for defence.

The Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020 replaced the DPP 2016 and created priority categories — Buy (Indian-IDDM) ranks highest, followed by Buy (Indian), Buy & Make (Indian), and so on — incentivising indigenisation at each stage.
Three Positive Indigenisation Lists have been notified, cumulatively covering over 5,000 defence items and sub-systems that can no longer be imported.
Defence Industrial Corridors: Uttar Pradesh has received investment commitments of ₹25,397 crore; Tamil Nadu has received ₹11,821 crore.

Connection to this news: The minister's projection of global export leadership is premised on this policy foundation — production capacity created under Make in India is the pipeline for future exports.

iDEX — Innovations for Defence Excellence

iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) is a scheme under the Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence, launched in 2018. It provides grants and support to Indian start-ups, MSMEs, and individual innovators to develop defence and aerospace technologies, reducing the long-standing dependence on large state-owned defence companies for innovation.

iDEX provides grants of up to ₹1.5 crore per project for early-stage defence technology development.
The ADITI (Acing Development of Innovative Technologies with iDEX) sub-scheme provides funding up to ₹25 crore for developing critical and strategic technologies.
iDEX operates through DISC (Defence India Start-up Challenge) rounds, with each round targeting specific technology gaps identified by the Services.

Connection to this news: iDEX is a key mechanism for generating the next generation of exportable defence products — the minister's vision of 25–30-year leadership depends on a sustained pipeline of indigenously developed technologies.

SIPRI Data: India's Arms Import and Export Profile

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) is the globally recognised reference body for arms transfer data. Its annual Arms Transfers report provides country-level import and export rankings.

In the 2020–24 period, India was the world's second-largest arms importer, accounting for 8.3 per cent of global arms imports (down from being the top importer in earlier periods), displaced to second place by Ukraine.
Russia's share of India's arms imports dropped from 72 per cent (2010–14) to 36 per cent (2020–24), reflecting active diversification; France became the second-largest supplier (28 per cent).
India did not feature in SIPRI's top 25 arms-exporting nations in the 2020–24 period, underscoring the scale of the transformation envisioned.

Connection to this news: The contrast between India's import-heavy past and the ambition to be the world's top exporter gives this statement its significance — SIPRI data quantifies the distance to be covered.

Defence Industrial Corridor and SRIJAN Portal

The SRIJAN (Self-Reliance in Defence portal) initiative is a dedicated indigenisation portal managed by the three defence services and DPSU (Defence Public Sector Undertakings). It lists imported items being considered for domestic substitution and invites Indian industry to offer indigenous alternatives.

SRIJAN enables industry visibility into import substitution opportunities — over 34,000 items have been listed for potential indigenisation.
Two Defence Industrial Corridors are designed as end-to-end manufacturing ecosystems, providing common infrastructure for defence manufacturing clusters.
The corridors are intended to attract both domestic and foreign investment, including Joint Ventures under FDI policy (FDI up to 74 per cent under automatic route in defence manufacturing).

Connection to this news: The minister's confidence in export potential is grounded in the growing manufacturing ecosystem these corridors and portals are building.

Key Facts & Data

India's defence production: ₹46,000 crore (2014) → ₹1.51 lakh crore (present)
Defence exports: below ₹1,000 crore (2013–14) → ₹23,622 crore (FY 2024–25) — a 34-fold increase
Export target: ₹50,000 crore by 2029; production target ₹3 lakh crore by 2029
India's share of global arms imports (SIPRI 2020–24): 8.3% — ranked 2nd globally
India did not feature in top 25 global arms exporters (SIPRI 2020–24)
75% of India's capital procurement budget reserved for domestic manufacturers
Positive Indigenisation Lists cover over 5,000 items banned from import
iDEX grants: up to ₹1.5 crore per project; ADITI scheme: up to ₹25 crore
Defence Industrial Corridors: UP (₹25,397 crore commitments), Tamil Nadu (₹11,821 crore)
India exports defence equipment to over 85 countries