INDIA-MADE ARMS COME OF AGE

MAKE IN INDIA HAS GIVEN A PUSH TO TURN INDIA INTO A DEFENCE MANUFACTURING HUB. CAN THE COUNTRY'S FAST-GROWING DEFENCE FIRMS CHALLENGE THE GLOBAL BIGGIES?

- BY TINA EDWIN

BHARAT FORGE CHAIRMAN and Managing Director Baba Kalyani summed up the key takeaway from Operation Sindoor at the recently held Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) annual business summit. “Executed with strategic clarity and precise coordination, it showcased not only the operational brilliance of the Indian armed forces but also the growing strength of India’s indigenous defence manufacturing ecosystem.”

The operations were a defining moment for India’s fast-growing defence manufacturing sector. The prospect of more orders prompted some to announce capital expenditure plans. “We have to take responsibility to build equipment fast so that we can provide our armed forces much more than what they have today and what they need in future,” Kalyani added. Pune-based Bharat Forge is one of India’s leading private sector defence manufacturers.

Almost on cue, Dassault Aviation and Tata Advanced Systems announced four production transfer agreements to make fuselage of the Rafale fighter jet at a new facility in Hyderabad. The partnership is a significant achievement for India’s aim of becoming a major defence manufacturing hub. It marks a significant first for the €6.2 billion French aerospace company as the Hyderabad facility, to be set up by Tata Advanced Systems, will be the first factory outside France to manufacture Rafale fuselage. The partnership has the potential to boost the country's defence and aerospace ecosystem and encourage other biggies to explore manufacturing tie-ups with Indian companies. At present, indigenous manufacturing is primarily driven by partnerships between government-run Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and industry.

RISING TO THE OCCASION

► India was the second-largest arms importer in FY24, accounting for 8.3% of global imports