India's Defence Industrial Policy
Make in India and iDEX
India's defence industrial ecosystem has been transformed through the Make in India initiative applied to defence manufacturing. The government introduced two positive indigenisation lists banning import of hundreds of items to promote domestic production, alongside an increased Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) cap in defence manufacturing raised to 74% via automatic route (and 100% via government route). The iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) platform supports defence startups and MSMEs for developing cutting-edge technologies. The INDUS-X initiative between India and the US, launched in June 2023 under iCET, is the bilateral extension of this approach, connecting Indian defence startups with US counterparts. ISA-enabled collaboration directly supports the Make in India goal by giving Indian private firms access to classified US defence industrial information.
- FDI in defence manufacturing: 74% via automatic route; 100% via government route
- Two Positive Indigenisation Lists: banning import of 300+ defence items cumulatively
- iDEX: supports startups and MSMEs in defence technology innovation
- INDUS-X (2023): bilateral defence innovation bridge under the iCET framework
- Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020: categorises procurement to favour indigenous development
● Tracked since March 25, 2026 · last seen May 20, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes