Ongoing Conflicts Hint To Ramp Up Ammunition Production: Anurag Bajpai, Addl Secy, MoD

The defence industry is strengthening to produce ammunition due to supply chain disruptions as we depend on imports for critical raw materials, affecting indigenous production capabilities, said Anurag Bajpai, Additional Secretary Defence Production, Ministry of Defence.

The current geopolitical crises in defence all over the globe are hinting at ramping up ammunition production, Bajpai added while speaking at PHDCCI’s event in New Delhi on Tuesday.

He said that many industry players have taken licenses, particularly for armament ammunition, but products have not been made and informed that not less than 40 licenses have been given in the ammunition sector in the last few years.

There is a need to focus on the planning process and maintaining our inventory and also a need to monitor the consumption pattern, he emphasised.

Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit said that there are high-technology items in air armament and the development of air ammunition is a costly affair as a lot of testing is required. Dixit further stressed that the making air armament integrated with all types of aircraft making it more effective and the private players can explore the opportunities in components and sub-components.

According to data released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and geopolitical tensions around the world fuelled a strong increase in demand for weapons and military equipment.

As per the same report, US arms exports accounted for 40 per cent of the global total in 2018–22 and were 14 per cent higher than in 2013–17.

Sangeet Kumar Sanu

BW Reporters Sangeet Kumar Sanu as a Correspondent reports on Defence, Space and Foreign Affairs for BW since 2022.