AIMING FOR THE TOP

This year, India saw a convergence of multiple security threats—economic, military and health-related. A pandemic triggered an economic crisis and a military deployment by China triggered anxiety on the country’s northern borders. But, as they say, sometimes it takes a crisis to kickstart reform, especially in the defence sector. In May, the ministry of defence (MoD) rolled out some of its biggest policy incentives to boost indigenous defence manufacturing. The biggest post-Independence reforms announced over the past year include the appointment of a new chief of defence staff (CDS), a decision to corporatise the 40 defence ordnance factories and banning certain defence imports. These will help India address the twin challenges of modernising its ageing military hardware and indigenising its military to achieve self-sufficiency. The first India Today Defence Summit, held virtually on November 21, brought key stakeholders on board to discuss the MoD’s indigenisation drive. There was plenty of optimism about the