India sets aside ₹4.78 lakh crore for defence, 19% hike in capital expenditure

The increase comes at a time when India is locked in a prolonged border row with China and the threat of a two-front conflict with China and Pakistan cannot be ruled out

Published on: Feb 1, 2021, 14:10:29 IST

By Rahul Singh

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India has set aside ₹4.78 lakh crore for military spending in its budget for 2021-22, compared to last year’s ₹4.71 lakh crore, according to official documents.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaks at Lok Sabha during the Budget Session of the Parliament, in New Delhi, Monday. (PTI)

The figure includes ₹1.35 lakh crore earmarked for buying weapons and systems, compared to the capital expenditure of ₹1.13 lakh crore last year—an increase of almost 19%. The increase comes at a time when India is locked in a prolonged border row with China and the threat of a two-front conflict with China and Pakistan cannot be ruled out.

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This year’s allocation includes ₹2.12 lakh crore for revenue expenditure and ₹1.15 lakh crore for defence pensions. The defence pension bill is lower than last year’s when it stood at ₹1.33 lakh crore.

The defence outlay last year stood at ₹4.71 lakh crore compared to ₹4.3 lakh crore in 2019-20.

“The overall increase in budget seems meagre but the allocation for capital expenditure appears to be healthy,” officials said.

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