Defense Minister Rajnath Singh set a $31 bn arms production target and $5 bn export goal for 2029 amid a defense modernization drive

India has set an ambitious $31 billion defense production target to be reached by 2029 as the South Asian nation embarks on a military modernization drive by leveraging its growing manufacturing power.

Defense Minister Rajnath Singh also set a $5 billion export goal for the country’s arms industry, up about 30% from the financial year ended March.

The domestic defense production push is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make-in-India policy. India’s defense production increased from $4.9 billion in the 2015-15 financial year, when Modi first came to power, to $18.8 billion in the financial year ended March.…