Delhi Defence Dialogue 2026 Begins at MP-IDSA in New Delhi

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh addressed the third edition of the Delhi Defence Dialogue at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA) in New Delhi on 3 November 2026. He said military preparedness in this century is tied to a country's technological and industrial strength, and called for making critical equipment at home and building the ability to sustain it without outside help. True self-reliance, he said, means owning the knowledge to design a platform, the technology to make it, the intellectual property to improve it and the capacity to keep it running through its life.

The theme and its four parts

This year's theme is Defence Reforms, Aatmanirbharta, Collaborations and Exports. The Minister called these four interconnected pillars of the goal of a developed India by 2047: reforms create the institutional setting, Aatmanirbharta builds indigenous technology, collaborations speed up access to advanced technology and co-development, and exports supply the scale and competitiveness an industry needs. He warned that self-reliance without reforms, partnerships and exports would narrow the country's technological horizon.

Figures the Minister gave

• Defence production touched a record of about Rs 1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025-26.
• Defence exports rose to Rs 38,424 crore, with Indian products reaching more than 80 countries.
• The targets are Rs 3 lakh crore of production and Rs 50,000 crore of exports by 2029.
• The year 2025 was observed in the ministry as the Year of Reforms, focused on jointness, integration and emerging technologies.

Industry and research

He recalled the setting up of Defence Industrial Corridors and the conversion of the former Ordnance Factory Board into seven defence public sector undertakings, and invited private firms, MSMEs, start-ups and academia into programmes such as the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, propulsion systems, ATAGS, artillery ammunition and shipbuilding. Research, he said, must stay free to question settled assumptions even while the armed forces inform its priorities, and successful ideas must move from the laboratory to production. On partnerships he said self-reliance is not a retreat from the world, and future ties should rest on co-development, co-production and shared innovation with real Indian participation in design.

About the dialogue

The two-day dialogue, held on 3 and 4 November 2026 by MP-IDSA, brings together policymakers, the armed forces, industry, academia and strategic experts from India and abroad. Director General of MP-IDSA, Ambassador Sujan R Chinoy, said the institute had also held two preparatory roundtables on propulsion systems and defence exports and the first ASEAN-India Defence Think Tank Forum. Chief of Integrated Defence Staff Air Marshal Tejinder Singh and Additional Secretary Dipti Mohil Chawla were present.