Govt Official: India’s Arms Exports Have Increased By Sixfold Since 2014

The Defence Ministry announced on Friday that India’s arms exports had increased by around sixfold since 2014, with the current fiscal year’s total of Rs 11,607 crore.

Ajay Bhatt, a junior Defence Minister, stated in a written reply to the Lok Sabha that the value of defence exports has increased to Rs 11,607 crore in 2021-22 from Rs 1,941 crore in FY15. “Many reforms/steps have been made by the government over this period to strengthen defence exports and improve ease of doing business,” he stated.

By 2025, the Indian government has set a target of roughly Rs 36,500 crore in yearly exports. The corporatization of the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) and its 41 factories into seven defence PSUs, according to Bhatt, will also contribute in increasing exports.

The $375 million (Rs 2,770 crore) contract to supply BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines was signed in January this year, paving the path for further such deals with the Philippines and other Asean countries like Indonesia and Vietnam, as reported earlier by TOI. India is now in talks to export the BrahMos and Akash air defence missiles to countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.