Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has released revised financial powers for the armed forces, increasing them by up to 100 percent, and in some cases more than doubling them, to expedite military procurement and foster indigenous defence production. This updated framework, which last saw revisions in 2021, aims to empower field commanders for quicker decision-making, reduce contract finalization delays, and accelerate critical projects, including medical and infrastructure initiatives, with provisions for joint procurement by the lead service and the introduction of new authorities to decentralize the purchase of goods and services, ultimately facilitating procurement worth over ₹1.25 lakh crore through the revenue route and enhancing emergency purchase capabilities.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has released revised financial powers for the armed forces, increasing them by up to 100 percent, and in some cases more than doubling them, to expedite military procurement and foster indigenous defence production. This updated framework, which last saw revisions in 2021, aims to empower field commanders for quicker decision-making, reduce contract finalization delays, and accelerate critical projects, including medical and infrastructure initiatives, with provisions for joint procurement by the lead service and the introduction of new authorities to decentralize the purchase of goods and services, ultimately facilitating procurement worth over ₹1.25 lakh crore through the revenue route and enhancing emergency purchase capabilities.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has released revised financial powers for the armed forces, increasing them by up to 100 percent, and in some cases more than doubling them, to expedite military procurement and foster indigenous defence production. This updated framework, which last saw revisions in 2021, aims to empower field commanders for quicker decision-making, reduce contract finalization delays, and accelerate critical projects, including medical and infrastructure initiatives, with provisions for joint procurement by the lead service and the introduction of new authorities to decentralize the purchase of goods and services, ultimately facilitating procurement worth over ₹1.25 lakh crore through the revenue route and enhancing emergency purchase capabilities.

In a move aimed at speeding up military procurement and boosting self-reliance in defence production, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on Wednesday, released the revised Delegation of Financial Powers for the armed forces, including powers related to medical and infrastructure projects.

Under the revised framework, financial powers available to military commanders have been increased by up to 100 per cent, and in some cases more than doubled, according to a defence ministry release.

The government hopes that this will enable field commanders to take quicker procurement decisions, reduce delays in contract finalisation and accelerate the execution of critical projects.

Financial Powers were last notified in 2021. 

Financial powers for indigenisation and research and development within the military ecosystem have been doubled. The move is expected to help the three services procure more equipment and technologies from domestic sources while reducing dependence on foreign Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).

According to the defence ministry, the revised powers will facilitate procurement worth more than ₹1.25 lakh crore through the revenue route based on current budget allocations.

The government has also significantly enhanced special financial powers available to the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force commanders to meet urgent operational requirements. The overall ceiling for such emergency purchases has been increased by 100 per cent.

The revised framework introduces provisions for joint procurement by the lead service, with higher financial delegations than those available under normal procurement procedures. 

"In addition to the enhancement in financial powers, new provisions have been included to promote Joint Service procurement by the Lead Service with higher delegation than the normal procurement. Many new Competent Financial Authorities have been introduced to decentralise the procurement of Goods and Services," the defence ministry release stated.

The decentralisation move will enable decisions on the purchase of goods and services to be taken at lower levels instead of being routed through higher headquarters.

The review was undertaken to account for the expansion of the armed forces, rising operational expenditure and higher defence budget allocations.

"This revised delegation in financial powers, along with the revised Defence Procurement Manual notified in October 2025, will give a fillip to defence procurement with expeditious decision making. This will lead to timely availability of resources as per the needs of the Defence Forces," the defence ministry release stated.

Chief of Defence Staff General N.S. Raja Subramani, Chief of the Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, and Secretary (Defence Production) Sanjeev Kumar among others were present on the occasion. 

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