Indianisation of the Defence Industry in India: Evaluating the Expanding Role of the Private Sector in Defence Manufacturing

This chapter traces the continuing evolution of India's defence industrial base with a particular focus on the growing role of the private sector in defence production in the country in the context of indigenisation policy. The study places this analysis in the context of Atmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India and employs a qualitative and thematic analysis approach based on eight purposively selected case studies across the aerospace, armoured vehicles, ammunition, electronics, naval systems and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) sectors. Tata Advanced Systems, L&T Defence, Bharat Forge, Mahindra Defence, Solar Industries, the Kalyani Group, Adani Defence and the iDEX innovation ecosystem are the cases. The chapter systematically thematises the four dimensions of policy enablement, private sector capability development, export ambition and structural barriers to highlight key mechanisms that are driving India's shift from a defence economy that is largely import dependent and public sector led, to a more pluralistic and innovation-led defence industrial ecosystem. The findings show that while landmark reforms like the Defence Acquisition Procedure 2020, progressive Positive Indigenisation Lists and FDI liberalisation to 100% have paved the way, there are still a number of structural issues that are preventing the private sector from leveraging the strategic potential, such as the inefficiencies in the procurement cycle, the public-sector mentality in the PIB publication and the prototype-to-production valley of death. The chapter ends with a conceptual model for ongoing indigenisation and suggests avenues for future research for scholars and policymakers in this field.