India’s CDS castigates defence companies for ‘delays and unmet promises’

• India’s defence chief slams local firms for delays.
• Chauhan slams defence equipment as “70% indigenous”.
• “Such misrepresentation compromised national security.”

India’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan has castigated the country’s defence industry, exposing deep fissures in New Delhi’s self-proclaimed drive for military self-reliance and raising fresh questions about the reliability of equipment.

Speaking at a seminar in New Delhi, the CDS slammed several manufacturers for misleading the military by falsely branding imported equipment as “70% indigenous”.

“We expect a bit of nationalism and patriotism in your profit-driven endeavours. I am given to understand… actually, the Army was telling me that they were scouting for 5th and 6th EP procurements, most of the people have over-promised things and they have failed to deliver in that time frame,” the CDS said.

According to Indian publication The Print, EP refers to emergency procurements under which the services have been given powers to sign contracts up to INR3 billion each to beef up their capabilities without going through the procurement processes of the defence ministry.

He also criticised Indian firms for repeatedly failing to deliver defence equipment ordered under emergency procurement powers, despite government claims of unprecedented military capacity.

Chauhan said companies had “over-promised” and routinely missed deadlines, leaving the armed forces short of critical capabilities.

The CDS warned that such misrepresentation compromised national security, noting that contracts were being awarded to firms with no real manufacturing capability, which simply repackaged imported material.

“Industry will have to be truthful about their capabilities to us. You cannot leave us in a lurch. You sign a contract, don’t deliver in that particular time, it is a capability that is being lost. You have to be truthful about your indigenous capability. There could be security-related issues,” he added.

Chauhan further rebuked defence suppliers for inflated pricing and lack of competitiveness, saying Indian firms were “overpriced” even for international markets.

He stressed that the armed forces could not be left “in a lurch” when companies failed to meet contractual obligations.

His remarks sharply contrast with Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” defence production.

Following the four-day armed conflict with Pakistan, CDS Chauhan acknowledged that the country lost several fighter jets during its recent military clash with Pakistan.

In an interview with Bloomberg, the CDS acknowledged for the first time that Indian fighter jets were indeed downed during recent hostilities with Pakistan. Without specifying the number of losses, Chauhan said that mistakes had been quickly identified and rectified.

“What is important is not the jets being down, but why they were being downed. The good part is that we are able to understand the tactical mistake which we made, remedy it, rectify it, and then implement it again after two days and fly all our jets again, targeting at long range”, he said.

In May, Pakistan and Indian engaged in a military showdown, the worst between the old foes in decades, which was sparked by a terrorist attack on tourists in IIOJK’s Pahalgam area, which New Delhi said was backed by Pakistan.

Islamabad denied involvement in the Kashmir attack, which killed 26 men and was the worst assault on civilians in India since the Mumbai attacks in 2008.

After the incident, India killed several innocent civilians in unprovoked attacks on Pakistan for three days before the Pakistan Armed Forces retaliated in defence with the successful Operation Bunyanum Marsoos.

Pakistan downed seven IAF fighter jets, including three Rafale, and dozens of drones. After at least 87 hours, the war between the two nuclear-armed nations ended on May 10 with a ceasefire agreement brokered by the US.