With dizzyingly fast modernisation, deadlier arsenal, and more powerful weaponry in the neighbourhood, it is only to be expected that defence of the country is the foremost priority come what may.
So much so, that while defence did not find even one mention in Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s more than 14,000-worded Budget speech on Saturday, at Rs 6,81,210.27 crore, it cornered about 13.45% of the total budgetary allocation, a 9.53% rise from the allocation of defence a year ago.
The allocation is also keeping in mind the aim for a technologically advanced and future-ready military with a focus on reforms and transformation through an infusion of technology in the backdrop of the ongoing effort at theaterisation, jointness and integration of the nation’s armed services.
The #BudgetSession2025 says several things about our path toward #ViksitBharat
— PIB India (@PIB_India) February 1, 2025
It has invested in agriculture. It has certainly looked at rural prosperity, and focuses on urban development, particularly looking at urban workers. And continues to lay emphasis on reforms.… pic.twitter.com/qtEi7SlXpV
Of the total defence allocation, 26.43% is to be spent on Capital Outlay, 45.76% on the Revenue Head, 23.60% on defence pensions, and 4.21% on civil organisations under the defence ministry.
Significantly, the allocation on Capital Outlay is 4.65% higher than the Budgetary Estimate (BE) of FY 2024-25. This amount is to be spent on the modernisation effort that includes big-ticket acquisitions in current and subsequent years. It means more buys of fighter aircraft, ships, submarines, unmanned aerial vehicles, drones, specialist vehicles, and lethal weapons, including state-of-the-art niche technology systems and platforms.
This spend is inclusive of the spend on cutting-edge and niche technologies like Cyber & Space and emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning and Robotics etc.
Interestingly, at Rs 26,816.82, the budgetary allocation for the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is 12.41%, higher than 2024-25.
In keeping with its declared policy of preference for home-grown products and platforms, 75% of the modernisation budget has been earmarked for procurement through domestic sources.
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The outlay on the Revenue includes expenditure on sustenance, operational preparedness, pay and allowances.
This amount also includes ration, fuel, ordnance stores and maintenance/repair of equipment, additional deployment of the forces in the border areas, hiring of vessels, increase in expenditure on longer sea deployment of ships and increase in flying hours for the aircraft.
In a bid to continue encouraging the growing start-up ecosystem for innovation in defence, Rs 449.62 crore has been set aside for the iDEX scheme, including its sub-scheme Acing Development of Innovative Technologies with iDEX (ADITI). This money will be utilised for funding the projects to be taken up under this scheme.
Keeping in view the need for maritime security along the coasts, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has been allotted Rs 9,676.70 crore under the Capital and Revenue Head which is 26.50% more than the 2024-25 allocation.
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO), tasked with improving the border Infrastructure and facilitating the movement of Armed Forces personnel through tough terrains, has been allocated Rs 7,146.50 crore, which is 9.74% higher than the 2024-25.
