Defence production at record high of nearly Rs 1.27 lakh crore

Aided by the successful implementation of various policies and initiatives of the Government focused on achieving ‘Aatmanirbharta’ under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Ministry of Defence has achieved the highest ever growth in indigenous defence production in terms of value during the financial year 2023-24. According to data received from Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs), other PSUs and private companies producing defence items, the value of defence production in the country has reached a record high of Rs 1,26,887 crore, registering a growth of 16.7 per cent over the defence production of the previous financial year. The value of defence production during the financial year 2022-23 was Rs 1,08,684 crore.

Acknowledging this achievement through a post on X, Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh said that the ‘Make in India’ programme under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is achieving new milestones year after year. He reiterated the Government’s unwavering resolve to develop India as a leading global defence production hub.

Of the total value of production (VOP) during 2023-24, about 79.2 per cent has been contributed by DPSUs/other PSUs and 20.8 per cent by the private sector. The data shows that in absolute value terms, both DPSUs/PSUs and private sector have recorded a steady increase in defence production. Shri Rajnath Singh congratulated the entire defence industry including DPSUs, other PSUs producing defence items and private industry for taking defence production to an all-time high.

This feat has been achieved due to various policy reforms/initiatives undertaken by the Government during the last 10 years with a focus on achieving self-reliance and ease of doing business initiatives. Indigenisation efforts have been aggressively pursued on a sustained basis, resulting in the highest ever VOP. Further, rising defence exports have contributed tremendously to the overall growth of indigenous defence production. The fact worth noting here is that during the financial year 2023-24, defence exports touched a record high of Rs 21,083 crore, showing a growth of 32.5 per cent over the previous financial year. Last year, this figure was Rs 15,920 crore.

During the last five years (since 2019-20), the value of defence production has been rising steadily and has increased by more than 60 per cent. Following are the year-wise details: