Union defence minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday chaired a meeting of the Consultative Committee of the Ministry of Defence on ‘Modernisation of Indian Defence Forces’ in Jaisalmer, emphasising the government’s commitment to building a technologically empowered military capable of meeting present-day and emerging security challenges.
Attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth, defence secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, Secretary (defence production) Sanjeev Kumar, secretary (ex-servicemen Welfare) Sukriti Likhi, secretary (defence finance) Vishvajit Sahay, and senior civil and military officials, the meeting deliberated on changing warfare patterns, emerging security threats, technological advancements and the need to strengthen the operational preparedness of the armed forces.
Highlighting the increased financial support for military modernisation, Singh said the defence budget for FY 2026-27 had been raised to a record ₹ 7.85 lakh crore, including a capital outlay of ₹ 2.19 lakh crore for modernisation and capital procurement. On India’s growing self-reliance in defence manufacturing, the defence minister said domestic defence production had increased from ₹ 46,429 crore in FY 2014-15 to a record ₹ 1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025-26. Defence exports, which were below ₹ 2,000 crore in 2014, had also grown to approximately ₹ 40,000 crore.
Addressing the committee, Singh said the government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was focusing on three key areas — budget and capital acquisition, self-reliance in defence manufacturing, and technology and human capital — to prepare the armed forces for the evolving demands of modern warfare. “We aim to achieve defence production worth ₹ 3 lakh crore and defence exports worth ₹ 50,000 crore by 2029,” he said. He said the government was providing a level playing field to the private sector, encouraging participation from MSMEs to large corporations in the defence ecosystem. He said strategic autonomy and indigenous technological capabilities were essential to national security, and the government was working to build a robust domestic defence ecosystem to reduce dependence on foreign sources.
