Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the nation during Independence Day celebrations on August 15. Picture: REUTERS/ADNAN ABIDI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration earlier this month announced curbs on $47bn worth of imports that include communication satellites, conventional submarines and light machine guns. But defence experts said it didn’t address critical issues such as the certification of systems and locally made components, and won’t prevent the military from making emergency purchases of equipment from foreign vendors.
The ministry’s ban on imports will have little impact beyond “measures already taken to localise defence production and reduce import dependency”, said Amit Cowshish, a consultant with the New Delhi-based Manohar Parrikar Institute For Defence Studies and Analyses and a former financial adviser on acquisitions in the ministry of defence.While New Delhi is the world’s third-biggest military spender, its air force, navy and the army are still equipped with weapons that are largely obsolete.
“Time and access to technology is fundamental to such efforts — now a large proportion India’s defence industry is little better than system integrators,” said Rahul Bedi, a New Delhi-based independent defence analyst. “A major dose of realism is needed.”