India is the second largest importer of arms and armaments. The
majority of the country's military requirements are met through
procurement from the foreign defence manufacturers. With a view to
encourage domestic manufacturing and reduce its reliance on
imports, Indian government has launched its flagship and ambitious
'Make in India' Initiative.
While India had opened the doors of the defence industry for the
private sector in 2001, the foreign direct investment
(FDI) was permitted upto 26% only for defence
manufacturing. Further, prior government approval was required for
FDI in defence. During the period from 2001 to 2014, a
total FDI inflow of about INR 14 billion was reported.
Since the change of guards in the Indian government in 2014, the
defence industry has witnessed a series of reforms including the
enhancement of FDI limit for the defence manufacturing activities,
relaxation in licensing regime, focus on indigenisation of imported
spares and putting
