India now sources over 85 per cent ammunition indigenously: Army Chief

Indian Army Chief General Manoj Pande highlighted the need to transform the Indian Army into a self-reliant and future-ready force capable of sourcing or producing essential equipment indigenously.

Moving a step further in achieving “Aatmanirbharta” or self-reliance in the defence sector, the Indian Army has sourced over 85 per cent of ammunition indigenously. Speaking at the inauguration of Adani Group’s ammunition complex in Kanpur, Indian Army chief General Manoj Pande said: “… multiple cases are in advanced stages of fructification.”

"To further promote this initiative, the Indian Army has carried out a holistic review for a time-bound indigenisation plan of all ammunition currently imported, by onboarding private industry. Accordingly, a well-defined roadmap has been put in place based on the type of ammunition and existing capacities," Gen Pande said.

As of now, a total of 32 variants of ammunition in 12 categories have been identified in Phase One for manufacture by the domestic industry. 

"All cases are likely to fructify in the next one year, as per the envisaged timelines. Approval has been already obtained for five additional ammunition categories to be developed in Phase Two. Simultaneously, MAKE Programmes for developing new generation ammunition including the Electronic Fuses currently not held in the inventory, are also being progressed," the Army chief said.

Future-ready Indian Army 

While speaking on the occasion, Gen Pande underscored that initiatives to transform the Indian Army into an 'Atmanirbhar' and future-ready force as regards acquiring new weapon platforms, equipment and systems, is the need to be able to indigenously source or produce.

"Strategic prudence dictates that indigenous capacities in ammunition production is a crucial factor, in maintaining operational readiness and tempo during conflict," he said.

Currently, the Army has a large ammunition inventory comprising 175 variants of different calibre and types, ranging from ammunition for vintage platforms to advanced precision-guided munitions. Out of these 134 ammunition variants have already been indigenised through efforts of DRDO, Defence Public Sector Units and Private Industry. 

Gen Pande further added that due to production constraints, capacities and large requirements, for both operational and training needs, there exists a demand versus supply gap, which needs to be met through a diverse indigenous vendor base of private industry.

“Production and manufacture of ammunition of the desired specification and its sustenance throughout its life span is a complex process, requiring advanced manufacturing techniques and quality control checks, at each stage,” he said.