India’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has released figures of the nation’s defence exports, which have grown to a record high of Rupees 236 billion (approx. US$ 2.76 Billion) in FY 2024-25. India’s defence export figures had stood at Rupees 210 billion in FY 2023-24. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target of increasing the nation’s defence exports to INR 50,000 crore (approx. US$ 4.25 Billion) by 2029.

“India has evolved from a largely import-dependent military force to one increasingly focused on self-reliance and indigenous production. In a major boost to defence exports, a wide range of items from ammunition, arms, sub-systems/systems and parts and components have been exported to around 80 countries in the just-concluded FY,” the MoD said in a statement.

India’s defence export growth has primarily benefited the nation’s state-owned Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs), whose exports have increased by 42.85% in FY 2024-25. The Rupees 236 billion of defence exports is divided between state-owned enterprises with Rupees 152 billion in orders and the nation’s private defence sector, which contributed Rupees 84 billion.

India’s Department of Defence Production, which provides a dedicated portal for export authorisation requests, said it had issued 1,762 Export Authorisations in FY 2024-25, compared to 1,507 in the preceding year, registering a growth of 16.92%. The agency also stated that the total number of Indian defence exporters grew by 17.4% in the same period.

(Image: India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh with an indigenously developed 5.56 mm machine gun. India’s state-owned and private sector firms are now growing their export presence with such weapons. Credit: India MoD)

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