According to international media reports, the budget includes $5.6 billion for the acquisition of new fighter jets and $2.8 billion to enhance the naval fleet.
Despite over 80 million people in India living below the poverty line, the country continues to prioritize military expansion, further fueling regional tensions with its aggressive defense policies.The Ministry of Defence frames policies on defence and security-related matters, and ensures its implementation by the defence services (Army, Navy, and Air Force). In addition, it is responsible for production establishments such as defence public sector undertakings, research and development organisations, and ancillary services that assist the defence services, such as the Armed Forces Medical Services. This note analyses budgetary allocation and expenditure trends of the Ministry. The note also discusses certain issues such as the falling expenditure on defence as percentage of GDP, high share of pension, continued reliance on imports to meet defence equipment needs, and recruitment of personnel under Agnipath.
The Budget of the Ministry of Defence includes the allocation towards the three defence services along with the expenditure on research and development and border roads. In 2024-25, the Ministry has been allocated Rs 6,21,941 crore. This includes expenditure on salaries of the armed forces and civilians, pension, modernisation of armed forces, production establishments, maintenance, and research and development organisations. The allocation towards the Ministry is the largest across all ministries and accounts for 13% of the total expenditure of the central government. India among top global military spenders but expenditure declines as share of budgetAs per the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), India’s military spending was the fourth highest in 2023.
The military expenditure database maintained by SIPRI also includes spending on paramilitary forces. In 2023, India’s military expenditure among the top five countries was higher than only China as a share of GDP. However, China’s larger economy implies that it spends over 3.5 times as much as India on its military in absolute terms.
