India's private defence firms have made major strides in exports of advanced weapons systems.
That adds to the nation's growing defence exports, particularly to Global South nations in Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East, an expert said.
India's supplies of arms and ammunition to foreign countries topped the $3 billion mark between 2018 and the last financial year.
That is "evidence of the expanding contribution of the private sector to the nation's defence industry," Harpreet Sidhu, an analyst at the industry intelligence firm GlobalData Aerospace, Defence and Security, told Sputnik India.
The government has encouraged private companies to increase their production through initiatives including the Defence Output and Export Promotion Policy (DPEPP) 2020, he explained.
The policy aims for turnover of US$25 billion and exports of US$5 billion in the aerospace and defence sector by 2025 before adding that the Defence Manufacturing Industry has witnessed increased private participation due to the relaxation of licensing restrictions and implementation of the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, the analyst said.
Other recent initiatives in the defence sector include:
The Innovation for Defence Excellence (IDEX) scheme
The appointment of a Defence Exports Steering Committee
The creation of a Positive Indigenization List of major military hardware
The issuance of Lines of Credit to buyer nations and domestic private enterprises
The cooperation between public sector undertakings (PSUs) and private businesses is another important factor to create cutting-edge defence systems that are now being purchased all over the world, he noted.
The private sector's focus on research and development has produced cutting-edge inventions that boost exports, especially in the fields of electronics, aircraft and specialised industries like drones and communication systems, according to the expert. Top firms include Bharat Forge, Larsen & Toubro and Tata Advanced Systems.
"Several of them are integrated into international defence supply chains," Sidhu explained. "Because of this, they have been able to establish themselves in other markets by providing dependable, affordable Defence solutions."
By providing larger companies access to crucial parts and technologies, the government's initiative to support Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSME) has expanded India's military export base.
Supported by government incentives and innovation, around 50 Indian private companies, including Tata Group, Adani Aero Defence Systems and Technologies, Ashok Leyland Defence, part of the Hinduja Group, L&T India Defence and Aerospace, Mahindra Aerospace, Reliance Naval and Engineering Limited and Kalyani Group's Kalyani Strategic Systems and Bharat Forge, have played a key role in boosting defence exports to destinations such as Italy, Russia, Maldives, Armenia, Sri Lanka, UAE, and France, according to Sidhu.
Their exports include body armour, naval vessels, helicopters, avionics, radios, coastal surveillance systems, the Kavach anti-missile system, radio spares, electronic system and mechanical parts, as well as weapons systems: Dornier 228 aircraft, Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launcher, radars, simulators, armoured vehicles and artillery guns. The BrahMos missile, a joint venture between India and Russia, has also seen considerable demand from international buyers.
One outstanding product is the K9 Vajra-T, a self-propelled howitzer developed by L&T in partnership with South Korea's Hanwha Defence, which is attracting export interest. The Tata Group has already secured a significant deal with Morocco for its Wheeled Armoured Platform (WhAP), developed in collaboration with DRDO.
"Other notable exports include the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Dhruv, produced by Mahindra Aerospace and HAL, which has been sold to countries like Nepal and Mauritius, and Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) built by Reliance Naval and Engineering for smaller nations in the Indian Ocean region," Sidhu said.