Aatmanirbhar Bharat in defence manufacturing is increasingly relying on private industry as co-development partners rather than mere vendors. Discuss with examples.

Aatmanirbhar Bharat in defence has moved beyond import substitution to a structural shift in how systems are built: private firms are now entering at the design and development stage as risk-sharing partners, not merely supplying components against DRDO or DPSU drawings. This shift is real, though still uneven.

From vendor to co-development partner

• The clearest recent example is DRDO's AEW&C MK-II programme. In July 2026, the Centre for Air Borne Systems (CABS) engaged Adani Defence Systems and Technologies as Development cum Production Partner (DcPP) for the Mission Systems — the radar-avionics core, not peripheral hardware [1].
• A parallel contract with AI Engineering Services Ltd (AIESL) covers conversion of six A321 aircraft to "green" military configuration, creating a DRDO–PSU–private execution triad within one programme [1].
• This builds on the DRDO-developed NETRA AEW&C on EMB-145, three of which serve the IAF in IOC configuration — showing indigenous capability maturing from lab-led to industry-led [2].

Enabling policy architecture

• Instruments such as the Development cum Production Partner and Strategic Partnership models, negative import lists, and iDEX embed private firms in development contracts.
• The outcome is measurable: defence exports touched a record ₹23,622 crore in FY 2024-25, with the private sector contributing ₹15,233 crore — more than DPSUs [3].

Limits that persist

• Participation remains concentrated in a few large conglomerates; MSMEs stay tier-2/3 suppliers.
• Complex programmes still hinge on foreign OEM airframes and critical sub-systems, so co-development is partial rather than end-to-end.
• Long gestation, IP-sharing ambiguity and single-buyer risk constrain private R&D investment.

The private sector's role has genuinely deepened from supplier to co-creator, but the transition is incomplete. Widening DcPP-type arrangements to MSMEs, ensuring clear IP and payment frameworks, and sustaining assured order pipelines would convert episodic partnerships into a durable industrial base — advancing both strategic autonomy and the Aatmanirbhar Bharat goal of ₹3 lakh crore defence production.