Akash to Pralay: Why private missile manufacturing could be a game changer for India's defence readiness

In a landmark push toward expanding self-reliance in defence manufacturing, the Centre has approved the transfer of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)-developed technologies for all conventional missile systems to the Indian private industry. This has marked one of the most significant shifts in India's missile production model. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh cleared the decision, allowing qualified domestic companies to move beyond mere component supply and undertake full-scale, in-house production of missile systems for the first time.The conventional portfolio being thrown open is extensive, which according to sources covers Akash family of surface-to-air missiles, Very Short Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS), missiles of the Astra air-to-air family, Rudram anti-radiation missile, anti-tank systems including Nag and SANT, Man-Portable ATGM (MP-ATGM), Naval Anti-Ship Missile-Short Range (NASM-SR), Long Range Land-Attack Cruise Missiles (LR-LACM) and Pralay quasi-ballistic missile. Strategic missiles such as the Agni series and the K-series will not be made by the private industry. Weapons such as the Brahmos and the Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM), jointly developed by Russia and Israel respectively, as they are governed by separate arrangements.This marks a clear departure from the decades-old model where DRDO handed over its missile designs almost exclusively to state-run Bharat Dynamics Limited for series production. Going forward, private firms will compete for technology licences through a bidding process, opening the field to companies such as Tata, Adani, Bharat Forge, Mahindra and ICOMM, all of whom are already contracted for various tactical missile and rocket programmes. The defence ministry states that the shift will strengthen the domestic industrial base, cut import dependence, boost MSME participation, and raise indigenous value addition, cementing India's transition from being primarily an importer to becoming a serious player in the global missile export market.DRDO-private industry partnership on the riseThe Development-cum-Production Partner (DcPP) model has quietly become one of the most consequential frameworks in India's push for self-reliance in defence manufacturing. Conceived by DRDO, it works on a simple principle, capable manufacturing partners are identified from both public and private sectors through competitive selection, and the technology needed to actually produce these systems is then transferred to them.The scale of this ecosystem is striking. DRDO now draws on a network of over 2,200 industries capable of producing sub-systems, systems and equipment. By March this year, 134 companies had signed on as DcPPs or Production Agencies, more than 2,180 technology transfer agreements had been inked, and upwards of 2,780 Intellectual Property Rights had been opened up for tthe private industry to use, till June this year. This marks a structural shift for a sector once concentrated almost entirely within public sector giants, where cutting-edge research often took years to reach the battlefield. The DcPP model has quietly built the industrial backbone behind India's broader defence manufacturing expansion.Why involving private industry mattersRecent and ongoing conflicts, such as those underway in Ukraine and in west Asia have demonstrated the importance of maintaining a significant weapons stockpile and the manufacturing capability to make these weapons at scale. The ability of private industry to manufacture these weapons at scale. The government's decision to transfer DRDO's conventional missile technologies to the private industry carries a clear set of advantages for the country's defence manufacturing sector. It allows missile systems to move directly from the drawing board into industrial-scale production, cutting the years-long lag that has often kept indigenous designs stuck at the prototype stage. It also breaks the near-monopoly enjoyed by state-run Bharat Dynamics Limited, whose production lines are already stretched thin by both domestic orders and a growing export pipeline.By opening the field to multiple qualified private players, the decision widens India's overall manufacturing capacity, while also pulling MSMEs deeper into the supply chain rather than restricting participation to large conglomerates alone. This, in turn, is expected to push up domestic value addition and reduce dependence on imported components, a long-standing weak point in India's defence ecosystem.Crucially, the move also builds surge capacity, giving India the industrial depth to scale up output quickly should a prolonged conflict demand it, while strengthening the country's hand in a defence export market where interest in systems like the Astra is already growing. For DRDO itself, offloading production duties frees up bandwidth to focus squarely on developing the next generation of weapons systems.Private missile production in IndiaEven before this week's technology transfer announcement, Indian private industry had already built a substantial missile manufacturing footprint. Tata Advanced Systems has been central to the Akash Air Force Launcher programme and produces MRSAM Army launchers mounted on its own HMV 8x8 vehicles, alongside supplying Pinaka rocket launchers and command posts under a two-decade public-private partnership with DRDO.Bharat Forge, through its subsidiary Kalyani Strategic Systems, has secured large Pinaka rocket contracts, including export orders to Armenia, and has been positioned as a serious contender for future strategic projects. Solar Defence and Aerospace has gone furthest in developing its own systems outright, the Nagastra loitering munition, used during Operation Sindoor, the Bhargavastra anti-drone salvo system, and the proposed Maheshwarastra precision rocket family, besides serving as production agency for guided Pinaka rockets.Adani Defence and Aerospace has developed the SR-1 loitering munition and VTOL-5 attack drone in-house, while also acting as a DRDO production partner for guided munitions and anti-radiation missiles. ICOMM Tele contributes missile guidance systems and sub-components, while Mahindra Defence's missile-adjacent work remains largely confined to naval systems such as torpedo launchers and anti-submarine suites, rather than missiles themselves. Adani also lists weapon systems such as VSHORAD, MR-SAM, Rudram-1 and UAV Launched Precision Guided Missile (ULPGM) on its website.