Defence Secretary Sets Timeline to Hand DRDO Missile Technology to Private Industry, Sees $25 Billion-a-Year Opportunity
At the SIDM annual session, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh outlined plans to transfer conventional missile technology to private firms for production and put Indian industry's opportunity at $20–25 billion a year over the next decade.
India's Defence Secretary has put a number on what the government's push to hand more defence production to private industry could be worth. Speaking at the annual session of the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers (SIDM) in New Delhi on 9 October 2026, Rajesh Kumar Singh said Indian industry could be looking at an opportunity of roughly $20–25 billion a year over the next decade, and outlined plans to transfer conventional missile technology from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to private companies for commercial production.
The missile technology plan
The most concrete signal from the speech concerned missiles. The government plans to transfer technology for conventional missile systems to private industry so that companies can take them into series production, according to reports by SSBCrack and ANI. Most coverage put the target for this at November 2027; one outlet reported November 2026, and the exact systems, companies and transfer arrangements are still to be confirmed through official announcements.
Until now, India's missile programmes have largely followed a model in which DRDO designs a system and production is carried out by defence public-sector undertakings such as Bharat Dynamics Limited, with private firms supplying sub-systems. Opening conventional missile production to private companies would broaden the manufacturing base for weapons whose demand has risen sharply, both for India's own forces and for export.
A narrower DRDO
Singh also described a DRDO that would concentrate primarily on research, operate with fewer laboratories and leave production to industry, except in specialised strategic areas where there is no alternative, according to SSBCrack and DefenceWatch.
That message builds on remarks Singh made in September 2026, when he said DRDO should cut its portfolio of 37 major projects down to around 10 and hand production work to industry. The SIDM speech adds a timeline for missiles and an estimate of the market at stake.
The $25 billion opportunity
Singh put the opportunity for Indian defence industry at about $20–25 billion a year over the next ten years, and noted that 75% of the capital procurement budget is earmarked for domestic sources, Indian Masterminds and SSBCrack reported.
On procurement, he said some ongoing processes could turn into signed contracts before the end of 2026. On the pending proposals, he said: "All are being processed at highest levels," ANI reported.
The session, held under the theme "Sovereign Capabilities, Contested Frontiers", also saw Defence Minister Rajnath Singh present the SIDM Champion Awards and call for greater private-sector participation in defence production.
Why it matters
For private manufacturers, the significance lies less in the headline figure than in the shift in roles it implies. Missile production requires investment in energetic materials, propulsion, seekers, guidance electronics and test infrastructure — capabilities that only a handful of Indian private firms possess today. A firm transfer-of-technology timeline gives those firms a reason to commit capital, and could pull a wider supplier base of MSMEs and start-ups into the supply chain.
For DRDO, a leaner portfolio focused on research could free scientists to work on next-generation technologies rather than shepherding mature systems through production. The risk is in the transition: technology transfers in Indian defence have historically been slow, and production quality depends on how well design knowledge moves from laboratory to factory floor.
The speech also fits a pattern of recent ministry decisions aimed at lowering barriers for private firms. Earlier in October, the Ministry of Defence opened its proof ranges and test facilities to industry and waived fees for projects under the iDEX and Technology Development Fund schemes — a practical step, since access to test ranges is one of the costliest hurdles for any company trying to qualify a weapon system. Missile manufacturing by private firms would depend heavily on exactly that kind of access.
The plan's credibility will rest on the details still to come — which missiles are offered first, on what licensing terms, and whether production orders follow quickly enough to justify the investment industry is being asked to make.
Sources
- ANI: https://www.aninews.in/news/national/general-news/all-are-being-processed-at-highest-levels-defence-secy-outlines-overhaul-of-procurement-drdo-reforms-and-25-bn-industry-opportunity20261009180505/
- DefenceWatch: https://www.defencewatch.in/ministry-of-defence/drdo/defence-secretary-signals-procurement-overhaul-drdo-reforms-and-25-billion-annual-industry-opportunity
- SSBCrack: https://www.ssbcrack.com/2026/10/defence-secretary-rajesh-kumar-singh-outlines-25-billion-opportunity-for-indian-defence-industry.html
- Indian Masterminds: https://indianmasterminds.com/news/rajesh-kumar-singh-25-billion-indian-defence-industry-opportunity-240950/
- Indian Masterminds (reforms explainer): https://indianmasterminds.com/news/defence/indian-defence-reforms-2026-241211/
- The News Mill (SIDM Champion Awards): https://thenewsmill.com/2026/10/rajnath-singh-presents-sidm-champion-awards-2026-urges-greater-private-sector-role/