Why does India have a ‘list of arms’ it doesn’t want to import?

India has released a fresh ‘list of arms’ it does not want to import. The fifth ‘positive indigenisation list’ was put out by defence minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday at the ‘Swavlamban 2.0’ seminar organised by the Indian Navy. But what is the ‘list of arms’? Which weapons are on the list? And why does India have a ‘list of arms’ it doesn’t want to import in the first place? Let’s take a closer look: What is it? The ‘positive indigenisation lists’ comprise defence equipment whose import will be banned in a staggered manner. This equipment will be designed, developed and manufactured by domestic companies over the next few years. The first list was released in August 2020 and subsequent lists were put out in May 2021, April 2022 and May 2023.

Every item on the lists has a cut-off date – after which it can no longer be procured from abroad.

The previous lists contained a total of 411 military items. The fifth list, put out on Wednesday, was prepared by Department of Military Affairs after several rounds of consultations with stakeholders. This list comprises major weapons systems, sensors and munitions including

• Futuristic infantry combat vehicle
• Remotely piloted airborne vehicles (up to 25 km range with payload of 2 kg for Army) Shipborne unmanned aerial system
• Medium upgrade low endurance class tactical drone
• Next generation low-level light radar for Army
• Electro optic fire control system for naval platforms

The list also comprises armour plates for cabin nose section for Mi-17 helicopter, multifunction aviation ground equipment for Air Force, gravity rollers for Mi-17 V5 helicopter and flares of P-8I and MiG 29-K aircraft. As per Hindustan Times, the latest list takes the number of major defence items that will not be imported after their cut-off date to 509. Meanwhile, the Department of Defence Production has notified four Positive Indigenisation Lists consisting of a total of 4,666 items, including Line Replacement Units/Sub-systems/Spares and components for Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs). Seventy-five technologies having applications in various military hardware including underwater swarm drones, autonomous weaponised boat swarms and fire fighting systems were displayed at the seminar. Last year, in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Indian Navy had committed to develop these 75 technologies. “It lays special focus on import substitution of components of major systems besides important platforms, weapon system & sensors and munitions which are being developed and likely to translate into firm orders in the next five to ten years,” the ministry of defence stated in a press release. “Highly complex systems, sensors, weapons and ammunition have been included in the list. All these items will be procured from indigenous sources as per provisions given in Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020 in a staggered timeline,” the defence ministry added. Why does India have such lists? This has been done in keeping with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi government’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’.

The aim is to make the defence sector self-reliant and boost exports through the active participation of public and private sector.

Singh in his speech said he was of the view that India has always been self-reliant in the field of knowledge and innovation and when the Modi government came to power in 2014, it rekindled the feeling of being ‘Aatmanirbhar" (self-reliant) in every sector. [caption id=“attachment_13114482” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called for a careful assessment of the technological challenges. ANI[/caption] “Due to foreign invasions, we had forgotten our innovative approach. The word ’local’ became synonymous with low quality. We’re now freeing ourselves from that mentality,” he said. “Our prime minister launched the ‘Vocal for Local’ campaign and restored respect for local goods. Our youth are now recognising their inner strength and eliminating inner doubts,” he said. “In the coming times, they will play a big role in the development of the country with their innovative approach and knowledge,” he added. The defence minister also called for a careful assessment of the technological challenges – whether they are state-of-the-art as per today’s time and whether any better technology is expected in the near future. He stressed the need to ascertain whether a technology is already available somewhere in the market or “we’re just re-inventing the wheel”. He also pointed out that it is essential to assess the viability of a technology from the point of view of the economy. This will provide a better value for money on your R and D expenditure, he said. Singh pitched for devising a robust mechanism to conduct analysis before the introduction of any technology or challenge. For this, he said, the Department of Defence Production, Defence Research and Development Organisation and the armed forces can together form an independent body of experts, which can further improve the analysis mechanism. Hindustan Times quoted Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral R Hari Kumar as saying, “Dependence on others for one’s defence needs is a strategic vulnerability that must be overcome The Hindu quoted Kumar as saying the Indian Navy had vowed to become self-reliant by 2047. Kumar said the Indian Navy, by the 100th anniversary of Independence, must reflect the strong and developed nation. “A force that uses unique concepts and capabilities that are made in Bharat, made by Bharat, made for Bharat!” Kumar added, as per The Hindu. “The items in the list will provide ample visibility and opportunity to the domestic industry to understand the trend and futuristic needs of the Armed Forces and create requisite R&D and manufacturing capacity within the country,” the ministry of defence added. Singh also launched SBI NAVeCash Card which is a one-of-its-kind dual-chip debit card. It has been developed by the State Bank of India (SBI) and the Indian Navy. The card can be used in online mode (as a regular debit card) as well as in offline mode when the Navy personnel are at sea with no direct connectivity with the bank. The card has been developed and tested onboard various Indian Naval ships and is now ready for launch pan-Navy, the defence ministry said. With inputs from agencies