Ensuring adequate combat preparedness in view of the "external security environment" in the immediate neighbourhood is India's top priority as reflected in the interim defence budget announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday.
Around 27.6 percent of the defence budget has been allocated for capital acquisition, which includes $2.84 billion for the Defence, Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to encourage domestic research and manufacturing of advanced weapons systems.
India's Focuses on Combat Readiness in Budget Allocation, Army Veteran
Lieutenant Colonel JS Sodhi, an Army veteran and a geopolitical expert, told Sputnik India that the lion's share of allocation to defence in the overall budget clearly showed that the Indian government is "well cognizant of the fact that the combat preparedness of India has to be kept at an all-time high".
Significantly, New Delhi has created a $12 billion corpus fund to encourage "deep technology" research, which includes developing military fusion technologies in the domain of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
"As stated by President Vladimir Putin in 2017, the country which controls Artificial Intelligence will control the world. So, the emphasis being laid on these technologies is a step in the right direction" the expert said.
Immediate Priorities of Indian Forces
Sodhi spelled out the priorities of the Indian Navy, Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Army, as evidenced from budgetary estimates.
As far as Navy is concerned, the veteran reckoned that there was a need to increase the number of warships in the Navy.
"We need to increase the number of warships with the Navy as sea will play an important role in geopolitics of the region. India should actively work towards developing and inducting a third aircraft carrier in a shorter time frame to project force across the region and towards becoming a blue water navy," Sodhi remarked.
Importantly, the defence ministry has highlighted that investments in Indian ship-building sector have risen by 82 percent year-on-year and major state-of-the art naval platforms could be inducted in coming months.
The defence ministry has said that the "planned modernisation" of IAF's Sukhoi-30 fighter jet fleet and acquisition of advanced engines for India's Mig-29 jets would be funded from this year's allocation.
The AK-203 rifles are being manufactured in India using Russian technology under a transfer of technology pact.
Assault Rifle AK-203
© Photo : Rosoboronexport
External Security Environment Dictates to "Continue Upgrading" Military Capabilities, Ex-Envoy Says
"Defence and security of the country is a primary concern of the Indian government which is clearly reflected in the higher defence budget allocations," Ambassador Anil Trigunayat, New Delhi's former envoy to Jordan, Libya and Malta told Sputnik India.
"India has to keep pace with technological advancements and equipment to defend her territorial integrity and sovereignty," he added.
He also highlighted that the interim defence budget presented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government also laid a great thrust on indigenisation of the defence industry, in line with the government's policy of 'Make in India'.
Last year, India’s defence exports hit a record high of $1.93 billion, as New Delhi develops its own manufacturing capabilities to wean off foreign imports.
"India in recent times has become a reliable security partner for many countries as well as first responder during the natural and man-made disaster situations," Trigunayat concluded.