Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday (Dec 29) that the country’s defence exports would touch $2.88 billion (around ₹24,000 crore) in the financial year (FY 24), according to media reports. Speaking at an event at the AM Jain College in Chennai, Finance Minister Sitharaman said that defence exports were to the tune of $2.4 billion so far in the current financial year.
The finance minister also said that the country’s defence forces were signing Memorandum of Understanding (MOUs) with Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) engaged in defence production for procurement for 10 years if the products met the prescribed standards.
Sitharaman pointed out that such long-term contracts were not signed in the past.
Defence Exports Grew 23 Times In 9 Years
A report released on May 30 this year said that India recorded an extraordinary 23 times rise in military exports in the last nine years when Prime Minister Narendra Modi first came into power.
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“India’s defence exports have reached an all-time high, surging from ₹686 crore ($82 million) in FY 2013-14 to nearly ₹16,000 crore ($1.9 billion) in FY 2022-23. This remarkable 23-fold increase reflects India’s progress in the global defence manufacturing sector,” the report said.
“To give a push to defence exports, the government has taken a number of policy initiatives and brought reforms over the last nine years. Export procedures have been simplified and made industry-friendly, with end-to-end online export authorisation curtailing delays and bringing ease of doing business,” it added.
A report by the Times of India (TOI) on Friday said that the defence ministry reported a rise of 10 times in exports since 2016-2017, with the country now exporting to more than 85 countries.
The major destinations for India’s defence product exports include Russia, Poland, Spain, Maldives and Nepal.
