From protecting the soldier to building the arsenal

India’s defence manufacturing journey at 80

As India celebrated its 80th Independence Day, the meaning of self-reliance has changed. India in 1947 inherited an industrial base not designed for an independent nation and now, in 2026, is building an increasingly capable defence manufacturing ecosystem expected to equip its armed forces, innovate, scale and compete globally.

A modern military needs more than aircraft, warships and tanks. It requires body armour, precision ammunition, drones, counter-drone systems, sensors, advanced materials and the industrial capacity to manufacture, replenish and sustain these capabilities during prolonged operations. Strategic autonomy is ultimately the ability to sustain combat capability. This is where India’s private defence industry becomes significant.

For instance, SMPP Ltd’s journey reflects this transformation. Its initial growth was driven by advanced materials research, particularly high-performance structural ceramics. The company focused on lightweight individual protection and platform shielding, engineering body armour plates designed to mitigate high-velocity, armour-piercing threats.

The supply of 186,000 Bullet Resistant Jackets (BRJs) to the Indian Army, along with the armouring of aircraft and helicopters in India and abroad, established SMPP’s capability to manufacture specialised defence hardware at scale.

Using Boron Carbide ceramics, among the hardest man-made materials, SMPP reduced personal protection weight while providing multi-hit protection against hard steel core (HSC) rounds.

This expertise created a pathway into ammunition. SMPP expanded into 155 mm artillery ammunition and became a private supplier of combustible cartridge cases and shells.

The company was the first private enterprise in India to manufacture combustible cartridge cases for 155 mm, 120 mm and 125 mm main battle tank ammunition. These casings burn completely upon firing, eliminating spent shell casings inside an armoured fighting compartment.

The significance goes beyond the component. Wars are not sustained by platforms alone; they depend on the ability to manufacture, stock, replenish and precisely deliver ammunition. For a technologically sophisticated military, secure access to ammunition is therefore a strategic requirement. SMPP has also reported successful trials and evaluations involving 155 mm ammunition and Bi-Modular Charge Systems. Its Himachal Pradesh facility further strengthens the domestic supply chain. In November 2025, SMPP entered into a teaming agreement with KNDS for the KATANA family of 155 mm precision-guided artillery ammunition. The partnership envisages offering KATANA to the Indian Army within the Make in India framework. The development signals a broader shift in Indian defence manufacturing—from components and conventional systems to increasingly sophisticated, technology-intensive capabilities.

The delivery of jet-powered Peacekeeper (Agnivaig) platforms marked another stage, taking SMPP into high-speed autonomous air systems designed for contested and electronically challenging environments.

Through partnerships including its collaboration with Europe’s KNDS, SMPP is also developing next-generation loitering munitions combining GNSS navigation and inertial systems for precision engagement. This evolution illustrates how indigenisation is changing. It does not mean shutting the door to international technology. The next phase depends on combining domestic engineering, manufacturing and supply-chain capabilities with global technology and expertise.

The objective should be to create capability in India — not merely assemble products in India. This distinction matters as defence technology becomes more complex and the strategic value of intellectual property, engineering know-how and resilient supply chains grows.

SMPP’s expansion from advanced materials and individual protection into ammunition and autonomous systems reflects this transformation and aligns with Atmanirbhar Bharat by strengthening indigenous capabilities across critical defence supply chains.

Defence manufacturing cannot be built through policy announcements alone. It requires patient capital, predictable procurement, testing infrastructure, skilled manpower, sustained R&D, strong quality systems and long-term demand visibility. The Indian Armed Forces are increasingly partners in innovation. Operational feedback helps companies understand what works in real-world conditions and where products and capabilities must evolve. Equally important is collaboration among large defence companies, start-ups, MSMEs and global technology partners.

India will not—and need not—develop every technology independently. The objective should be to anchor critical knowledge, manufacturing capability, expertise and intellectual property within the country. India’s defence-industrial ecosystem is taking shape. The test is whether the country can develop technologies suited to operational requirements, manufacture them at scale, upgrade them and take them to global markets.

For companies such as SMPP, the journey from ballistic protection to ammunition and unmanned systems mirrors this transformation, demonstrating how an Indian defence manufacturer can evolve with the armed forces—from protecting the soldier to contributing to systems that shape the battlefield. As India looks towards 2047, the question is no longer simply whether India can manufacture more defence equipment, but whether it can build an ecosystem capable of anticipating threats, developing solutions, sustaining production during crises and becoming a trusted technology partner to friendly nations. For the soldier, that means better protection; for the artilleryman, more precise ammunition; and for the commander, greater access to unmanned systems. For the country, it means confidence that critical defence capabilities can be created and sustained at home.

The author is an Artillery Officer of 1975 Batch and has commanded an Infantry Division in Ladakh. He is strategic advisor, SMPP; Views presented are personal.