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India 4th biggest military spender in world: SIPRI

ByRahul Singh
Apr 24, 2023 06:52 PM IST

India’s expenditure on equipment upgrades for the armed forces and strengthening military infrastructure along its disputed border with China accounted for 23% of its total military spending in 2022

India, which has sharpened its focus on building its defence capabilities and strengthening military infrastructure along the China border, was the fourth biggest military spender in the world in 2022 after the United States, China and Russia, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) said in a report published on Monday.

India allocated Rs.5.25 lakh crore for military spending in last year’s budget, <span class='webrupee'>₹</span>4.78 lakh crore in 2021-22, and Rs.4.71 lakh crore the year before (File Photo)
India allocated Rs.5.25 lakh crore for military spending in last year’s budget, 4.78 lakh crore in 2021-22, and Rs.4.71 lakh crore the year before (File Photo)

Saudi Arabia was in fifth place. The five countries accounted for 63% of the world’s military spending.

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“India’s military spending of $81.4 billion was the fourth highest in the world. It was 6% more than in 2021 and up by 47% from 2013. The increase in India’s spending shows the effects of its border tensions with China and Pakistan,” the Sipri report said.

The report comes at a time when India and China have been locked in a standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh since May 2020, and negotiations are on to ease border tensions. The two sides on Sunday held the 18th round of military talks to resolve outstanding problems.

Also Read: India, China hold 18th round of military talks on LAC row

India’s expenditure on equipment upgrades for the armed forces and strengthening military infrastructure along its disputed border with China accounted for 23% of its total military spending in 2022, the report mentioned, adding that salaries and pensions remained the largest expenditure category in the Indian military budget, and accounted for around half of all military spending.

India faces unique security challenges as it has two nuclear-armed neighbours with whom it has had full-scale wars, and the militaries continue to face each other at the borders, said Air Marshal Anil Chopra (retd), director general, Centre for Air Power Studies. “India is now the fifth largest economy, and for its size and threat perceptions, the defence spending is proportionate,” Chopra added.

Total global military expenditure increased by 3.7% in 2022, hitting a new high of $2,240 billion, Sipri said while highlighting that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was a major driver of the growth in spending last year.

China continues to spend more on defence than India. In 2022, China’s military spending reached $292 billion, the report said.

In February, India set aside Rs. 5.93 lakh crore for defence spending in this year’s budget, including a capital outlay of Rs.1.62 lakh crore for the military’s modernisation, with the allocation almost 12% higher than that in last year’s budget estimates, and about 2% more compared to that in the revised estimates for 2022-23.

The budget also includes a revenue expenditure of Rs.2.7 lakh crore and a pension outlay of Rs. 1.38 lakh crore. This year’s defence budget accounts for 2% of the country’s projected gross domestic product (GDP) for 2023-24.

This year’s capital outlay is about 6% higher than last year’s budget estimates and about 8% more compared to that in the revised estimates for 2022-23. The capital allocation will power of purchase of fighter aircraft, helicopters, warships, missiles and several land systems, including tanks and artillery guns.

India allocated Rs.5.25 lakh crore for military spending in last year’s budget, 4.78 lakh crore in 2021-22, and Rs.4.71 lakh crore the year before.

In another report published in March 2023, Sipri said India’s arms imports fell 11% between 2013-17 and 2018-22 but the country is still the world’s top importer of military hardware. That report came at a time when India has sharpened its focus on achieving self-reliance in the defence manufacturing sector.

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Also, India’s share of the global arms imports was the highest during the last five years at 11%, followed by Saudi Arabia (9.6%), Qatar (6.4%), Australia (4.7%) and China (4.7%), according to data published by Sipri that measures weapons imports over five-year periods.

The March report said the reasons for the decline in India’s imports included attempts to replace imports with local military hardware and a complex procurement process.

India has taken a raft of measures over the last four to five years to boost self-reliance in defence. These include creating a separate budget for buying locally made military hardware, increasing foreign direct investment (FDI) from 49% to 74%, and notifying hundreds of weapons and systems that cannot be imported and are planned to be indigenised over the next five to six years.

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